Bode Miller wins 3rd training run

Patrick Lang 01.02.2008 20:29 Uhr

The early morning clouds luckily cleared away at the end of the morning allowing the third and last downhill training run to take place at noon on Bellevarde’s « La Face » course which had to be shortened because of clouds floating on the top of the mountains.

Only 43 of the 71 skiers took advantage of the improved weather conditions to test the challenging course another time a day before the first of two events scheduled this weekend at Val d’Isère.

American Bode Miller clocked the best time of the day steaming down the 2 139-metre run with its 702-metre vertical drop in 1.34,51. French skier David Poisson, already second fastest on Thursday was again 2nd, 61/100 of a second behind the leader.

Austria’s Christoph Gruber was 3rd ahead of Italy’s Christoph Innerhofer and Sweden’s surprising Markus Larsson.

Rainer Schoenfelder was 6th a few hundredths ahead of Hermann Maier and Didier Defago.

Most of the top speed-specialists as Didier Cuche or Marco Buechel skipped this final practice session while former World Champion Michael Walchhofer, who suffers a bad flue, had to stay in his hotel-room. He will not be able to compete this weekend.

Miller aims for two wins at Val d’Isère.
Bode Miller was pleased by his promising performance. «The course is quite difficult but it’s getting better and better, we’re gradually getting to know the slope,” he told the press.

“It was a good idea to shorten the course for this last practice run, so it was not as exhausting for us as on the previous days,” added the Overall World Cup leader. “I tested some skis today and I must say that I was pleased with the results.”

“I really hope that both events planned here this weekend will take place as I hope to win them both. I’m feeling better today, I have finally recovered from my crashes from last week.

The quadruple World Champion definitely belongs to the group of top-favorites her along Didier Cuche, Marco Buechel or Mario Scheiber, another skilled racer on treacherous courses.

Another strong run for David Poisson.
David Poisson, consistently fast here this week, was also satisfied by the issue of that timed trial. « If was interesting trying out different lines today, » echoed David Poisson. « One can gain time on the upper section of the course. The lower part demands full commitment and you have to hold on in there. I think that you have to remain super calm and full-on whilst keeping the trajectory simple.”

The French skier, already nicknamed “Pocket Hercules” by the English press, concluded with an elate « I really like this slope and I hope to reach the top-15 ».

Italy’s Christof Innerhofer, the fastest man on the slope on Thursday, confirmed his strong form in finishing a solid 4th today. He aims to fight for the first time for the podium here. « It was really good », he explained.

“I changed my trajectory after watching the video and I hope it paid off.” added the 23-year-old Rossignol skier from Brunico.

Maier was pleased.
Hermann Maier improved his level of performance today even though he lost a few tenths of a second at the start almost dropping one of his poles. “The mid-section went well as well as the last part where I had a few problems yesterday,” he explained.

“I was more aggressive this time”, he added. “I like the course as it represents a great technical challenge. I’m already so motivated for the forthcoming World Championships.”

In the Finish Area, President of the FIS, Gian Franco Kasper, was also pleased. “I know that « La Face » is a very difficult and interesting slope but it takes time to know it well,” he said. “The 2009 World Championships are promising but it’s important for the organising committee start to create a strong and attractive feeling for this big event. For the moment, let’s hope that the weather will be fine this weekend.”

The weather forecast is not too optimistic for the next 24 hours. Strong gusts of wind and heavy snowfalls are expected to hit this part of the French Alps yet it should be sunny again on Sunday. FIS has set its priority on the Super-combined competitions.