Marlies Schild back on track

Patrick Lang 10.11.2007 20:11 Uhr

Austria’s Marlies Schild started the season the same brilliant way as a year ago in Levi, Finland – with a superb victory over the rest of the field in a very challenging slalom. But this new triumph – the 16th in her impressive career – visibly brought her more joy and excitement than many of the previous ones from last winter.

In fact the defending slalom World Cup champion had to fight much harder this time to beat her rivals on the smooth “Gasselhoehe” course already used last year for a couple of last-minute make-up races put together after the cancellations of events scheduled in France.

The 26-year-old champion from nearby Saalfelden who captured seven out of nine slalom races last season, made several unusual mistakes during her second run and was lucky to finally beat by 6/100 of a second her teammate Nicole Hosp. Italy’s Chiara Costazza, the surprising leader in the first run, came in 3rd at 30/100.

USA’s Resi Stiegler, 4th, missed the podium by only 11/100 finishing ahead of Slovakia’s Veronika Zuzulova and Sweden’s Maria Pietilae-Holmner. Maria was 2nd after the first leg.

The reigning World Champion Sarka Zahrobska was 7th and Finland’s Tanja Poutiainen 8th. Anja Paerson ended a far 12th!

Schild, who took over the lead in the Overall World Cup standings with this win, overcame difficult weather conditions and great pressure to capture her fourteenth World Cup slalom since her first success at the Finals in Sestriere in March 2004.

She had to face more than heavy snowfalls and strong gusts of wind to remain once more out of reach for her rivals – there was also much weight on Benni Raich’s girl-friend who was the skier to beat in that race. “The local newspapers and all my fans expected me to win today – and I was also seeking to start a new series of victories today, so I felt a lot of pressure before the start,” she explained after the race. “I was very fast in slalom in recent training camps so I felt confident but you’re always nervous before the first race you aim to win!”

Too passive in the first run
“In the first run, I was too passive and not able to attack the course as hard as I wished,” Schild also explained. “The trainers saw it and told me to be more determined and confident. I took more risks in the afternoon but I made those mistakes in the middle of my second run as I took a too straight line in a couple of gates. I didn’t clearly see the course because of poor visibility, and I almost crossed my skis. I lost much time and speed with that mistake so I had to push very hard to get back some momentum. I fully attacked in the final part yet I was amazed when I took over the lead, and even more when I kept it after all the skiers had finished their run.”

“I badly wanted to win that race but I didn’t expect it after my incident. It’s a great feeling to have reached that goal in those conditions!”

Hosp, the fastest skier in the second run, was pleased to confirm her potential in slalom after an average race at Soelden two weeks ago. The defending Overall World Cup champion, who captured the slalom at the last Finals in Lenzerheide, aims to raise her level in that specialty to have a better chance retaining her title this winter.

“I know I can ski faster in slalom, I still need a few weeks to improve my level and be more consistent throughout each run,” she said. “Marlies has so much routine and confidence now that she is very difficult to beat when she achieves two consecutive strong runs.”

First podium for Costazza
Chiara Costazza, for the first time on a World Cup podium in her career, was delighted to confirm the strong form of the Italian team. Denise Karbon’s win at Soelden obviously boosted the moral of the Italian skiers. They achieved another strong team performance in Reiteralm with three skiers among the best 15 and four in the points!

“I was pretty nervous today, especially prior the second run and I’m proud to have done so well in the final run,” said the 23-year-old from Val di Fassa, in Trentino. “I was 4th at Zagreb last winter so I was looking for this result. I felt confident coming here because we trained well last summer. Our new head coach, Michael Maier, created a nice atmosphere within the team and we are all very motivated.”

The next women’s races are planned in two weeks at Panorama, Alberta, where a giant slalom and a slalom are scheduled in the same time as the men compete in Lake Louise.