LaMolina: Poutainen edges Moelgg for GS win

Finn Tanja Poutiainen collected her eighth career World Cup win and third in GS at LaMolina, Spain this morning, giving her four podiums already this season. Italy’s Manuela Moelgg notched her fourth career second place, just .02 of a second back. Nicole Hosp was third, leading a run of three Austrians into the finish order.

American Lindsey Vonn, aiming for her first GS podium left the race in the first run. Only Julia Mancuso represented the U.S. in the second heat and she finished in 18th.

Finn Tanja Poutiainen collected her eighth career World Cup win and third in GS at LaMolina, Spain this morning, giving her four podiums already this season. Italy’s Manuela Moelgg notched her fourth career second place, just .02 of a second back. Nicole Hosp was third, leading a run of three Austrians into the finish order.

American Lindsey Vonn, aiming for her first GS podium left the race in the first run. Only Julia Mancuso represented the U.S. in the second heat and she finished in 18th.

Poutiainen moved past Vonn to take over the lead in the overall standings 360-358. With podiums in all three GS races this season she also holds a solid lead in the GS standings 260-145 over first run leader Kathrin Zettel. The young Austrian skier went out in the second run.

For Poutiainen the win was a bit of relief. After two GS podiums earlier this season, she was wearing the red leaders bib in the race, but wasn’t sure it belonged to her.

“I had been close for quite a while and I was eager to win again. I was not far in Soelden and Aspen and podium places are fair enough but nothing beats a win,” she told Rueters. “I was wearing the red bib as the giant slalom World Cup leader and, in a way, without a win I did not deserve it.

It was the first time LaMolina has hosted a World Cup and the women found a challenging hill with rolling terrain and a steep finish pitch.

“It surprised us all,” said Poutianen. “It was pretty hard. We had to fight all the way.”

Among the problems was difficult light that transitioned from shade to bright. The U.S. skiers seems to fight harder than was necessary.

“We just didn’t execute,” said coach Jim Tracy. “I’m not going to sugarcoat anything. I believe we are as competitive as anyone out there. We just have to do it as a group.”

The coach said the results, “are clearly no indication of how good we are. We have to step it up tomorrow in the slalom and then in the next GS in Semmering. We’re not going to hang our heads and dwell on it. We have to go out and step it up because we can. We’ve already shown that this year.”

Tracy said two successive rolls at the bottom of the course caused trouble for both Vonn and Mancuso. “They just didn’t execute well,” he said.

Vonn said the roller pushed her off direction. “I just couldn’t get it back to the gate,” she told AP. “The course was much more aggressive than it or iginally looked.”

Among the podium awards for Poutiainen was a cured leg of lamb she held up tentatively for photographers.

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The SCOOP

By Hank McKee
Equipment

Women’s Giant Slalom, La Molina, Spain, Dec. 13, 2008

1 Poutianen, Volkl/Tecnica/Marker

2 Moelgg, Rossignol/Lange/Rossignol

3 Hosp, Volkl/Tecnica/Marker

4 Goergl, Head/Head/Head

5 Kirchgasser, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic

6 Gut, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic

7 Pietilae-Holmner, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol

8 Worley, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol

9 Maze, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol

10 Riesch, Head/Lange/Tyrolia

Women’s Giant Slalom, La Molina, Spain, Dec. 13, 2008. … It is the seventh race of the women’s 36 race 2008-09 World Cup schedule. … It is the third of eight scheduled GS’s. … It is the first Cup race at La Molina. … It is the first of a standard two race weekend stint at La Molina with a slalom scheduled tomorrow.

It is the eighth career World Cup win for Tanja Poutiainen. … Her third in GS with the remainder all slaloms. … It is her first win of the season, but her fourth podium, three of them coming in GS. … Her worst result in a completed race this season is sixth in slalom at Levi.

It is the fifth career World Cup podium for Manuela Moelgg and fourth in GS. … Four of her five podiums have been second place finishes. … She was .02 of a second from matching Poutiainen and collecting credit for her first win.

It is the 45th career World Cup podium for Nicole Hosp, her 20th in GS. … It is her second podium of the season after a second place finish in the Aspen slalom Nov. 30. … The 2007 Cup GS champion, she has not won a GS since the 2007 World Cup finals in Lenzerheide, March 18.

It is the 114th top 20 World Cup result for Julia Mancuso, the defending Olympic GS champion. … She has not recorded a win since March 3, 2007, a DH in Tarvisio.

Poutiainen takes over the lead of the overall standings 360-358 over Vonn. … Maria Pietilae Holmner (seventh in race) is third at 232. … Poutiainen also leads the GS standings 260-145 over Kathrin Zettel (DNF in race). Tessa Worley (eighth in race) sits third in the GS standings at 132.

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1	3	185140	POUTIAINEN Tanja	1980	FIN	1:07.74	1:09.02	2:16.76	0.00
2	4	296259	MOELGG Manuela	1983	ITA	1:07.29	1:09.49	2:16.78	0.13
3	13	55690	HOSP Nicole	1983	AUT	1:07.85	1:09.56	2:17.41	4.18
4	7	55576	GOERGL Elisabeth	1981	AUT	1:08.13	1:10.05	2:18.18	9.14
5	20	55759	KIRCHGASSER Michaela	1985	AUT	1:08.90	1:09.30	2:18.20	9.27
6	26	516138	GUT Lara	1991	SUI	1:08.04	1:10.28	2:18.32	10.04
7	9	505760	PIETILAE-HOLMNER Maria	1986	SWE	1:07.57	1:10.83	2:18.40	10.55
8	14	196928	WORLEY Tessa	1989	FRA	1:08.37	1:10.12	2:18.49	11.13
9	27	565243	MAZE Tina	1983	SLO	1:08.46	1:10.04	2:18.50	11.20
10	17	206001	RIESCH Maria	1984	GER	1:08.45	1:10.08	2:18.53	11.39
11	8	295435	GIUS Nicole	1980	ITA	1:08.81	1:10.10	2:18.91	13.83
12	16	55750	FISCHBACHER Andrea	1985	AUT	1:08.87	1:10.17	2:19.04	14.67
13	41	505908	SMEDH Veronica	1988	SWE	1:09.17	1:09.89	2:19.06	14.80
14	45	296379	GIANESINI Giulia	1984	ITA	1:09.48	1:09.63	2:19.11	15.12
15	15	196179	BERTRAND Marion	1984	FRA	1:09.35	1:09.79	2:19.14	15.31
16	21	55898	BREM Eva-Maria	1988	AUT	1:08.78	1:10.65	2:19.43	17.18
17	34	55818	KOEHLE Stefanie	1986	AUT	1:09.69	1:09.79	2:19.48	17.50
18	2	537545	MANCUSO Julia	1984	USA	1:08.52	1:10.97	2:19.49	17.57
19	42	55539	BERGER Silvia	1980	AUT	1:09.59	1:09.97	2:19.56	18.02
20	29	295342	PUTZER Karen	1978	ITA	1:09.78	1:10.11	2:19.89	20.14
21	30	515733	BONJOUR Aline	1985	SUI	1:09.57	1:10.48	2:20.05	21.17
22	39	425629	LOESETH Lene	1986	NOR	1:09.89	1:10.18	2:20.07	21.30
23	18	155415	ZAHROBSKA Sarka	1985	CZE	1:08.88	1:11.29	2:20.17	21.94
24	43	196725	BARIOZ Taina	1988	FRA	1:09.70	1:10.53	2:20.23	22.33
25	37	505610	BORSSEN Therese	1984	SWE	1:09.18	1:11.44	2:20.62	24.84
26	10	195671	JACQUEMOD Ingrid	1978	FRA	1:09.34	1:11.47	2:20.81	26.06

Did not start 1st run: JELUSIC Ana (CRO)

Did not finish 1st run: MORLANS Leyre (SPA), RUIZ CASTILLO Carolina (SPA), MARCHAND-ARVIER Marie (FRA), CURTONI Irene (ITA), LEINONEN Sanni (FIN), AGUILANIU Aude (FRA), CHMELAR Fanny (GER), FANCHINI Nadia (ITA), TROJER Karoline (ITA), DETTLING Andrea (SUI), FENNINGER Anna (AUT), SCHLEPER Sarah (USA), ALFIERI Camilla (ITA), REBENSBURG Viktoria (GER), HOELZL Kathrin (GER)

Did not finish 2nd run: SUTER Fabienne (SUI), PAERSON Anja (SWE), ZETTEL Kathrin (AUT), KARBON Denise (ITA)

Disqualified 1st run: VONN Lindsey (USA)

Did not qualify 1st run: GAGNON Marie-Michele (CAN), KARASINSKA Katarzyna (POL), ROMAR Tii-Maria (FIN), DUKE Hailey (USA), FLEISS Nika (CRO), LOLOVIC Jelena (SRB), LOESETH Nina (NOR), GINI Sandra (SUI), BERTRAND Olivia (FRA), HANSDOTTER Frida (SWE), MADER Regina (AUT), GASIENICA DANIEL Agnieszka (POL), BRODNIK Vanja (SLO), FERNSEBNER Carolin (GER), SIMARD Genevieve (CAN), LINDELL-VIKARBY Jessica (SWE), DREV Ana (SLO), ROBNIK Mateja (SLO)