France’s Worley takes Aspen World Cup GS, Mancuso eighth

Only three hundredths of a second separated the top three finishers at today’s (Nov. 27) World Cup giant slalom in Aspen, Colo. Sunny skies, temperatures in the 20’s and a hard course of hero snow set a great stage for the second World Cup GS of the young 2011 season.

France’s Tessa Worley turned an eighth-place first run result into her third World Cup victory – her second in Aspen – with a brilliant second run. She earned her first career World Cup win in 2008 on the same hill. She had a winning two-run time of 2:06.81 down what many racers called the best course conditions they’ve seen in Aspen in recent memory.

“I felt very lucky and very happy and I couldn’t believe that time was on my side,” said Worley. “It’s a technical course, so that suits me well. I like when it’s a pretty difficult slope and Aspen is one of the most difficult for the girls, I think. So, it’s really nice skiing on it.”

“The course was really turny. So, that’s what made it very physical at the end–it was turny all the way down,” continued Worley. “And with the speed you get, when it turns so hard, you just don’t get the gate after. I think that’s what happened with a lot of girls.”

First run leader, German Viktoria Rebensburg (the winner of the season-opening GS in Soelden, Austria,) held on to finish second, just one hundredth of a second behind Worley. Her teammate Katharin Hoelzl, last year’s winner here, earned her eighth career World Cup podium in third place, another hundredth of a second back. Rebensburg is the reigning Olympic GS champion and Hoelzl will defend her World Championship title in the same discipline this year in Germany.    
  
American Julia Mancuso had the second-fastest first-run time, but an early wide left-hand turn knocked the three-time Olympic medalist off her game and she continued to lose time through the demanding 44-turn, shady course. She finished eighth with a combined time of 2:07.51.

“I had a little problem on top. I felt like I lost my ski, so it was hard to get back in mentally, because I’ve been twice training and losing my ski, so something weird just clicked in my head and I  backed off a lot,” said Mancuso. “It was a little tougher turns, I guess it was a little more turny. And some of the gates were set on an extreme break-over, so it was hard to get your rhythm. I would have definitely liked the second run to go better but  it’s a really good start and it can only bring me more confidence.”

Mancuso’s best results in Aspen came in 2008 and 2006, when she finished 7th in the GS.   

Local favorite Lindsey Vonn had trouble at the top of the course, losing crucial rhythm. Seconds later she skied off course in a technical, shady portion of the upper hill. The only home race on the World Cup schedule has been less than hospitable to Vonn over the last two years, she did not qualify for a second run in last season’s GS (the three-time overall champion’s weakest discipline) in Aspen and DFNed in the slalom. She will get a second chance to make her fans the “Vonntourage” scream in tomorrow’s slalom.

“I went a little too straight. I got a little too excited and amped up and wasn’t using the greatest tactics. But that sometimes happens in ski racing and I’m definitely disappointed in today but I’m still optimistic,” said Vonn. “My training has been going really well in GS and slalom as well, so I’m just looking forward to the next races and staying positive and continuing to working hard.”

Colorado native Sarah Schleper was the only American to join Mancuso in the second run with a 21st-place run, 1.61 off the leading pace. She struggled in the middle of the course on her second run and finished 18th, grabbing valuable, early season World Cup points.

Americans Laurenne Ross, and Megan McJames finished the first run but not fast enough for a second go, while Leanne Smith joined Vonn in the firs run DNF column.

Levi slalom winner, Austrian Marlies Schild, mysteriously lost a ski in the middle of the course on her second run to join a list of eight Austrian women in the second run. “I just lost it. I don’t know why it happened. I think maybe some pressure. I don’t know why,” said Schild. “I didn’t go 100 percent. I just tried to ski good, to get a good feeling for the first GS after two and a half years. It wasn’t easy, to be honest.” 

Elisabeth Goergl led the Austrian women in fourth place. Andrea Fischbacher finished sixth ahead of teammate Nicole Hosp in seventh.

Current World Cup leader, German Maria Riesch grabbed the tenth-fastest first-run time in the number 2 bib, and moved up one spot to finish ninth and hang onto the overall lead with 125 points. Vonn stands eighth with 53 points.

World Cup racing at the Aspen Winternational continues tomorrow with the second slalom race of the season. Watch it live at Universalsports.com.

Images: Tessa Worley charges to her second World Cup win in Aspen (top). Julia Mancuso slipped from second to eighth between the two runs. (Gepa)

The SCOOP
By Hank McKee

Women’s World Cup Giant Slalom, Aspen, Colo., Nov. 27, 2010. … It is the second GS and third of 37 races on the women’s World Cup schedule. … It is the 65th World Cup race hosted by Aspen and the 18th GS. … no skier had ever previously won two World Cup GS races at Aspen.

It is the third career World Cup win for Tessa Worley, all in GS and her second at Aspen, the first scored Nov. 29, 2008. … Her third victory came last season in Are. … Those are the last three GS victories for France.

It is the third career World Cup podium for Viktoria Rebensburg and her second this season having won the opening GS at Soelden Oct. 23.

It is the eighth career World Cup podium for Kathrin Hoelzl and her second at Aspen having won the GS Nov. 28, 2009. … She is the defending World Cup GS champion.

It is the third best career GS finish at Aspen for Julia Mancuso, though she has never been better than seventh. … It is her second score of the season, both in GS. … It is the second best of three GS scoring results for Sarah Schleper’s career. … It is also her second scoring result of the season, both coming in GS.

German women hold the first three spots on the World Cup’s overall standings list led by Rebensburg with 180pts. … Maria Riesch is second with 154 and Hoelzl third with 146. … Mancuso leads all North Americans on that list in 14th place with 54pts. … Lindsey Vonn, a first run DNF is in 15th with 53pts. … Germany leads the women’s Nations Cup 619-467 over Austria with France third at 229. … The U.S. is seventh with 132pts.

Rank	Bib	FIS Code	Name	Year	Nation	Run 1	Run 2	Total Time	FIS Points
1	14	196928	WORLEY Tessa	1989	FRA	1:02.70	1:04.11	2:06.81	0.00
2	6	205218	REBENSBURG Viktoria	1989	GER	1:02.11	1:04.71	2:06.82	0.07
3	3	205993	HOELZL Kathrin	1984	GER	1:03.14	1:03.69	2:06.83	0.14
4	12	55576	GOERGL Elisabeth	1981	AUT	1:02.35	1:04.52	2:06.87	0.41
5	9	297601	BRIGNONE Federica	1990	ITA	1:03.06	1:04.18	2:07.24	2.95
6	16	55750	FISCHBACHER Andrea	1985	AUT	1:02.73	1:04.55	2:07.28	3.22
7	36	55690	HOSP Nicole	1983	AUT	1:03.39	1:04.00	2:07.39	3.98
8	18	537545	MANCUSO Julia	1984	USA	1:02.14	1:05.37	2:07.51	4.80
9	2	206001	RIESCH Maria	1984	GER	1:02.72	1:04.91	2:07.63	5.63
10	5	185140	POUTIAINEN Tanja	1980	FIN	1:02.18	1:05.62	2:07.80	6.79
11	22	196793	MARMOTTAN Anemone	1988	FRA	1:02.51	1:05.36	2:07.87	7.27
12	47	55806	ALTACHER Margret	1986	AUT	1:04.44	1:03.45	2:07.89	7.41
13	20	516138	GUT Lara	1991	SUI	1:02.71	1:05.31	2:08.02	8.30
14	1	565243	MAZE Tina	1983	SLO	1:02.67	1:05.41	2:08.08	8.71
15	8	196725	BARIOZ Taina	1988	FRA	1:03.79	1:04.52	2:08.31	10.29
16	7	505760	PIETILAE-HOLMNER Maria	1986	SWE	1:03.02	1:05.33	2:08.35	10.57
17	25	206355	DUERR Lena	1991	GER	1:03.52	1:05.03	2:08.55	11.94
18	21	536481	SCHLEPER Sarah	1979	USA	1:03.72	1:05.08	2:08.80	13.65
19	43	506399	HECTOR Sara	1992	SWE	1:04.15	1:04.70	2:08.85	14.00
20	42	505886	KLING Kajsa	1988	SWE	1:03.89	1:05.09	2:08.98	14.89
21	15	505483	PAERSON Anja	1981	SWE	1:04.29	1:04.85	2:09.14	15.99
22	24	55818	KOEHLE Stefanie	1986	AUT	1:03.61	1:05.58	2:09.19	16.33
23	10	55759	KIRCHGASSER Michaela	1985	AUT	1:02.77	1:06.84	2:09.61	19.21
24	29	296509	CURTONI Irene	1985	ITA	1:04.22	1:06.20	2:10.42	24.77
Disqualified 1st run
	57	185271	LEINONEN Sanni	1989	FIN
Did not qualify 1st run
	65	35089	SIMARI BIRKNER Macarena	1984	ARG
	64	196806	NOENS Nastasia	1988	FRA
	63	415128	JARVIS Sarah	1986	NZE
	62	35079	SIMARI BIRKNER Maria Belen	1982	ARG
	61	305962	HANAOKA Moe	1984	JPN
	59	305944	KIYOSAWA Emiko	1983	JPN
	58	565320	FERK Marusa	1988	SLO
	56	155415	ZAHROBSKA Sarka	1985	CZE
	54	505908	SMEDH Veronica	1988	SWE
	52	515855	GOOD Esther	1987	SUI
	50	538573	ROSS Laurenne	1988	USA
	48	425707	BRUSLETTO Anne Cecilie	1988	NOR
	45	538284	MCJAMES Megan	1987	USA
	41	196726	BARTHET Anne-Sophie	1988	FRA
	39	495065	RIENDA Maria Jose	1975	SPA
	38	565268	DREV Ana	1985	SLO
	35	105269	GAGNON Marie-Michele	1989	CAN
	33	425629	LOESETH Lene	1986	NOR
	30	505632	LINDELL-VIKARBY Jessica	1984	SWE
	28	196179	BERTRAND Marion	1984	FRA
	27	225206	ALCOTT Chemmy	1982	GBR
	23	295435	GIUS Nicole	1980	ITA
Did not finish 2nd run
	49	206160	RIESCH Susanne	1987	GER
	34	705287	ZUZULOVA Veronika	1984	SVK
	31	55590	SCHILD Marlies	1981	AUT
	17	515766	SUTER Fabienne	1985	SUI
	11	55898	BREM Eva-Maria	1988	AUT
	4	296259	MOELGG Manuela	1983	ITA
Did not finish 1st run
	60	485525	BUREEVA Vladislava	1989	RUS
	55	516109	VOGEL Nadja	1990	SUI
	53	538305	SMITH Leanne	1987	USA
	51	197319	BAUD Adeline	1992	FRA
	46	515849	DETTLING Andrea	1987	SUI
	44	206078	FERNSEBNER Carolin	1986	GER
	40	425880	SEJERSTED Lotte Smiseth	1991	NOR
	37	56032	SCHILD Bernadette	1990	AUT
	32	106825	PREFONTAINE Marie-Pier	1988	CAN
	26	296476	ALFIERI Camilla	1985	ITA
	19	537544	VONN Lindsey	1984	USA
	13	296379	GIANESINI Giulia	1984	ITA