International Roundup: March 17, 2005

International Roundup: March 17, 2005{mosimage}The big news of the week is the overall Alpine World Cup titles, which were handed out to Bode Miller of New Hampshire and Anja Paerson of Sweden. Miller, whose agent Lowell Taub confirmed Wednesday that Miller has signed a contract with Nike, will appear on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno later this month. The governor of New Hampshire has openly considered creating “Bode Miller Day.”

There were a good number of mainstream American newspapers writing about the World Cup Finals last week at Lenzerheide, Switzerland. Between the good profiles of Miller (such as these two by USA Today and the Associated Press) there were also interesting stories about Silvano Beltrametti, the way the Finals looked from Vail and Cannon Mountain, and the World Cup machine that has done so much to make Miller so irritable this season.

Regina Haeusl of Germany retires

Regina Haeusl of Germany, who won the women’s World Cup downhill discipline title in 2000, is retiring because of persistent knee injuries. The 31 year old raced in the 1994 and 1998 Olympics. In 2000, when she clinched the downhill title at Bormio, she fell in the finish area, sliding into the boards and breaking her leg.

U.S. team wins its first medal at Freestyle worlds

Kristi Leskinen earned the first medal for the U.S. Ski Team Thursday at the FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships when she finished second in the inaugural halfpipe contest, leading all three U.S. women into the top six places. Tyler Peterson was 10th in the men’s contest. “I’m pretty excited,” said Leskinen, who started skiing at Seven Springs Resort outside Pittsburgh when she was 6. She has lived in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., for several years and spends summers working at the Historic Summit Inn in Uniontown, which is managed by her mother. “I do it all at the hotel. If someone doesn’t come in, my mother says ‘That’s your job today’ and I do it,” Leskinen said with a laugh.

-USSA news service

Kucera and Brydon win Canadian national downhill titles

Emily Brydon and John Kucera won the downhill titles at the 2005 Pontiac GMC Canadian Championships at Le Massif. The world class race track and saw runs by Canadians, Americans, Lebanese, Czech, New Zealand, Japanese, and South African racers. After more than four days of challenging weather conditions due to heavy snowfall, fog and humidity, the volunteers’ patience and determination finally paid off as sun lit up the Charlevoix, just in time for the Pontiac GMC Canadian Championships’ official downhill race. More than 120 athletes ventured down the Charlevoix, a world-class course overlooking the Saint-Lawrence river and comprising a “Kitzbuehel-like” steep section.

-Courtesy CANSKI