International Roundup: Ghedina, Sullivan, blood tests, ski lengths

International Roundup: Ghedina, Sullivan, blood tests, ski lengthsKristian Ghedina isn’t going away

Italy’s top downhiller, Kristian Ghedina, says he will continue racing until 2006 so that he can win medals when the Olympics come rolling through his home nation in a year. ‘I want an Olympic medal in Turin’ he said Thursday after a training session in Pitztal, Austria. ‘For years I’ve been dreaming about the Olympic games in my home’ he said to Austria’s ORF television.

Ghedina is popular for his successful career and happy-go-lucky personality. At last year’s Kitzbühel downhill, he pulled a spread-eagle on the ‘zeilsprung’ (the final jump) a move that got him on evening interview shows alongside the race winner, Stephan Eberharter. Since Eberharter’s retirement announcement last month, Ghedina has apparently become one of the athletes constantly asked to explain his retirement plans and philosophy on age. Another is Frederick Nyberg of Sweden, who finished eighth at Sölden last week while organizers played Bryan Adams’s ‘Summer of ‘69’ on the loudspeakers (Nyberg was born in 1969).

“When I think it over, the way Stephan Eberharter dominated the World Cup downhill at age 35 last season, motivates me with my 34 years all the more’ says Ghedina. Another World Cup veteran, Hermann Maier, said earlier this summer that he plans to race into 2007 and possibly beyond.

Ghedina still holds the record for the fastest running of the world’s longest and oldest downhill course, Lauberhorn, where in 1997 he turned in a time of 2:24.23 (click here, and follow the link to ‘Rekorde’). He certainly races well in Italy: four of his 13 World Cup wins came at Val Gardena. His first World Cup win was at Cortina in 1990 and the most recent was Val Gardena in 2002.

Marco Sullivan re-injures knee while training in France

Marco Sullivan, the talented Californian downhiller who missed last season because of a major knee injury, had re-injured his ACL and will undergo surgery next week. According to a report by Steve Yingling in a local Tahoe paper, Sullivan flew home late last week and saw Dr. Terry Orr of Tahoe Fracture Clinic on Saturday in South Lake Tahoe, California.

The FIS releases blood testing statistics

At a conference the day before the alpine World Cup season began last week, the FIS announced that it will conduct more stringent doping controls against athletes. Blood tests have been in effect in the endurance events since 1997, and are now being extended to new disciplines. (click here for the story). In that meeting, the FIS released statistics showing breaking down how many blood and urine tests were conducted last season. These numbers reflect tests carried out between July 2003 and June 2004:

FIS In-/Out-Competition Tests 2003/2004

Cross-country 305 urine 828 blood

Nordic combined 52 urine 177 blood

Jumping 48 urine

Alpine 121 urine

Freestyle 70 urine

Snowboard 97 urine

Total 693 urine 1005 blood

Ski tips are an issue in World Cup slalom

At the team captain’s meeting on the night before the men’s giant slalom last weekend in Sölden, FIS race director Gunther Hujara urged World Cup coaches not to let their athletes get crosswise of the FIS by pushing the minimum ski length rule in slalom.

“If a racer finishes and one ski is shorter than the minimum length, then the second ski gives the measurements,” said Hujara. “If the measurement shows that both skis are short, there will be penalties. You all know what I’m talking about.”

The subtext is that ski manufacturers can skirt the ski lenght rule by extending the tips on their skis, passing the test while pushing the actual length below the minimum of 155 centimeters.

Austrian men’s coach Toni Giger was the only coach to offer a question about the rule. “What if the slalom ski breaks on the top,” he asked.

Hujara didn’t answer that question directly, but added this. “This is the information to you, the servicemen and the manufacturers.”

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