Men´s Slalom in Kitzbuehel (AUT) 2008

Ski2b Redaktion 20.01.2008 14:04 Uhr

00:50:

The alpine racing weekeend in Kitzbuehel ends with the men´s slalom on Sunday, January 20th at 10 am (CET).



09:42:

Welcome to the men's slalom in Kitzbühel!



09:43:

The slalom today is also part of the Super Combined Event, which also features yesterday's downhill.



09:45:

The field of competitors is huge: 95 athletes are taking part in the race.



09:46 - Neureuther, Felix (GER):

Felix Neureuther will open the first round in about 15 minutes. The German was not too lucky in Wengen and fell back to rank 20 after being 8th in the first run. Bib 1 could be a big advantage today, since the course is still optimally prepared then.



09:47 - Raich, Benjamin (AUT):

Benjamin Raich follows with bib 2. He dropped out in Wengen and was not happy about that at all. In his homecountry he wants to do better.



09:48 - Palander, Kalle (FIN):

A lot of favorites dropped out in Wengen, and so did Mario Matt and Kalle Palander. Both of them will start among the first 10 athletes today.



09:49 - Grange, Jean-Baptiste (FRA):

Jean-Baptiste Grange dominated the technical disciplines in Wengen. The French is leading the Slalom World Cup ranking, too.



09:50 - Byggmark, Jens (SWE):

Does Grange race to another victory today? Or is it young Jens Byggmark, who showed his skills with a 2nd position in Wengen?



09:51:

Marc Gini has won a slalom already this winter, too. How does the Swiss perform today?



09:52:

Yesterday's downhill was clouded by the horror crash of Scott Macartney. The American crashed down a few meters before the finish line and had to be taken to hospital.



09:54:

He was put into an artificial coma, but luckily does not have any severe injuries. He is even awake again.



09:56:

The forerunners are on the course, the race will begin in a few minutes.



10:00 - Neureuther, Felix (GER):

Neureuther is in the gate and opens the first run now.



10:02 - Neureuther, Felix (GER):

55.56 - that's the first time to beat in today's slalom. A good run for Felix Neureuther.



10:04 - Raich, Benjamin (AUT):

Benjamin Raich is next - and behind at the first intermediate already. The Austrian can't find the right rhythm, Neureuther stays in front!



10:06 - Mölgg, Manfred (ITA):

Manfred Moelgg is on the course. The Italian finds the rhythm fast, but has tiny difficulties in the steep part. That cost a little time, Moelgg is 2nd.



10:07 - Matt, Mario (AUT):

Mario Matt is the new leader! Despite a little mistake in the steep section, Matt is faster than Neureuther.



10:10 - Larsson, Markus (SWE):

Markus Larsson needs too much time to find the rhythm in this slalom. His margin grows in the steep part, so that he is a second behind in the finish.



10:11 - Byggmark, Jens (SWE):

Jens Byggmark is one of the favorites on the victory today. He attacks - and is 2nd, despite two bigger mistakes.



10:12 - Grange, Jean-Baptiste (FRA):

Jean-Baptiste Grange is next, winner in Wengen. A great performance in the final flat part, that's the lead! Grange is 0.22 seconds ahead of Matt.



10:14 - Kostelic, Ivica (CRO):

Ivica Kostelic is half a second behind at the first time measurement already. He loses more in the steep part, and is 6th in the finish.



10:17 - Palander, Kalle (FIN):

Another routined slalom racer is next: Kalle Palander. He is one of the slashers of the new Kitzbühel slalom hill. The Finn is suffering from an injury obtained in Westendorf - it's the 6th position for him in the finish.



10:18 - Janyk, Michael (CAN):

Michael Janyk slips a little in the first part, that costs time. The Canadian is 7th in the finish and happy with his run.



10:19 - Gini, Marc (SUI):

Drop-out! Marc Gini slips and can't reach the gate anymore.



10:20 - Lizeroux, Julien (FRA):

Julien Lizeroux attacks his teammate. A good run, the French is 3rd in the finish and cheers together with Grange.



10:23 - Myhrer, Andre (SWE):

Andre Myhrer should like this first part, but he is 0.4 seconds behind there already. His margin grows to 0.7 seconds in the finish. The Swede is 7th currently, ex aequo with Palander.



10:23 - Berthod, Marc (SUI):

Another drop-out, and again it's a Swiss racer! Marc Berthod misses a gate.



10:25 - Ligety, Ted (USA):

Ted Ligety is after a good Super Combined result. The course was set by his coach, is that of advantage? Ligety is 9th in the finish, without too many mistakes during the run.



10:29 - Albrecht, Daniel (SUI):

Daniel Albrecht dropped out in the downhill yesterday and can now be fully concentrated on the slalom. He does not find the rhythm though, and is about 2 seconds behind in the finish.



10:30 - Miller, Bode (USA):

Bode Miller was the big surprise in Wengen. And he attacks again today, but loses quite a bit of time without visible mistakes. The American is 1.46 seconds behind in the finish - but still in for a good Super Combined result.



10:31 - Herbst, Reinfried (AUT):

Reinfried Herbst loses a lot of time in the first part already. The final section is not his terrain at all, his margin grows to over 2 seconds. He's shaking his head in the finish.



10:32 - Rocca, Giorgio (ITA):

The margins are getting big. Giorgio Rocca loses 1.75 seconds on Grange and is 15th.



10:44 - Schönfelder, Rainer (AUT):

Rainer Schönfelder is not too far behind at the intermediate, but loses time in the steep part. The Austrian is 1.15 seconds behind in the finish, but still ahead of Raich on the 12 position.



11:17 - Cochran, Jimmy (USA):

Drop-out! James Cochran loses his balance and misses a gate.



11:17 - Sasaki, Akira (JPN):

Akira Sasaki gains a big margin in the middle part, where he loses over a second. The Japanese is 19th in the finish.



11:17 - Minagawa, Kentaro (JPN):

The next Japanese is on the course. Kentaro Minagkawa almost misses a gate in the middle part! He continues his run, but is over 5 seconds behind after crossing the finish line.



11:17 - Hansson, Martin (SWE):

Martin Hansson is next. The Swede is over a second behind at the first time measurement already and loses more time throughout the course, before he drops out.



11:17 - Koll, Alexander (AUT):

Drop-out! Alexander Koll begins well, but then misses a gate.



11:18 - Lahdenperae, Anton (SWE):

Anton Lahdenperae drops out after missing a gate.



11:18 - Brolenius, Johan (SWE):

Johan Brolenius is on the course. The Swede loses about a second in the middle part, like the racers before him. He is 23rd in the finish.



11:18 - Kucera, John (CAN):

John Kucera is the next one to compete. The Canadian is over one and a half seconds behind already after he first part. In the finish he is 5 seconds behind the leader.



11:18 - Grange, Jean-Baptiste (FRA):

After the first 31 athletes have completed their first run, Jean-Baptiste Grange is leading ahead of Mario Matt and Julien Lizeroux. The margins are not too big, so that the second run will be an exciting one.



11:18 - Scheiber, Mario (AUT):

Another drop-out! Mario Scheiber fails in the steep passage.



11:18 - Fill, Peter (ITA):

Peter Fill won't get World Cup points either: He misses a gate and drops out.



11:19 - Defago, Didier (SUI):

Didier Defago is competing for the Super Combined Event. He is 24th in the finish, 4 seconds behind Grange.



11:20 - Walchhofer, Michael (AUT):

Michael Walchhofer is after a good Super Combined result, too. A little slower than Defago, the Austrian has a margin of 4.88 seconds in the finish.



11:20 - Cuche, Didier (SUI):

Didier Cuche now, winner of the downhill yesterday. He is 6 seconds behind in the finish, that's a big margin even for the Super Combined.



11:20 - Hirscher, Marcel (AUT):

Bad luck for Marcel Hirschler! The Austrian was on a good run, but drops out then.



11:20 - Missilier, Steve (FRA):

Steve Missilier shows how perform a good slalom run with a high bib. He finds the rhythm fast and is 1.6 seconds behind in the finish.



11:20 - Kelley, Tim (USA):

Tim Kelley with a big mistake right after the start already. Consequently he drops out after the middle section.



11:20 - Trejbal, Filip (CZE):

Filip Trejbal drops out as well.



11:21 - Albrecht, Kilian (BUL):

Kilian Albrecht is the next one not to finish his run.



11:21 - Biggs, Patrick (CAN):

Patrick Biggs is on the course now. The Canadian has a margin of 1.2 seconds at the first time measurement, and loses about another second in the middle part. Biggs performs well in the final section though and is 23rd currently.



11:21 - Hargin, Mattias (SWE):

Again a few drop-outs: Naoki Yuasa and Mattias Hargin do not reach the finish today.



11:21 - Stutz, Paul (CAN):

More drop-outs: Stefan Kogler misses a gate and skies out, as does Mitja Valencic. Paul Stutz instead reaches the finish. The Canadian is 28th currently.



11:21 - Marshall, Cody (USA):

Cody Marshall finishes his race as well. The 25-year-old is 36th in the finish.




11:24:

Jean-Baptiste Grange is in front after this first run, he is followed by Mario Matt and Julien Lizeroux.



11:24:

That was the liveticker coverage of the men's first slalom run in Kitzbühel. We will be back with the second run, which is scheduled for 1 p.m. - stay tuned for more!



12:47:

Welcome back to the men´s slalom in Kitzbuehel!



12:50 - Grange, Jean-Baptiste (FRA):

Wengen winner Jean Baptiste Grange leads after the first run ahead of Mario Matt and Julien Lizeroux.



12:53:

In a few minutes the second run will get started. All the skiers within the top ten still have best chances to finish on the podium.



13:04 - Karlsen, Truls Ove (NOR):

The first one on the slope is Truls Ove Karlsen from Norway. Afterwards we will see the best 29 athletes of the first run and the candidates for World Cup points in the Combined standings.



13:05 - Stutz, Paul (CAN):

But the Norwegian doesn´t finish. Paul Stutz is next and he sets the first benchmark in the finish.



13:06 - Hörl, Wolfgang (AUT):

Now Wolfgang Hoerl is on his way. Already at the first intermediate he can undercut Stutz´s time. That´s the lead for the Austrian.



13:08 - Brolenius, Johan (SWE):

What about Johann Brolenius now? The Swede loses his margin from run one already on the first part of the Gaslern and drops back on two in the finish.



13:09 - Thaler, Patrick (ITA):

Patrick Thaler keeps his Margin in the first part but then he has difficulties to find a clean line in the next section. He misses the minimum time by seven tenths.



13:11 - Razzoli, Giuliano (ITA):

Giuliano Razzoli makes a big mistakes and has to climb back to get the pole. Of course he drops back a lot.



13:12 - Biggs, Patrick (CAN):

Like many other athletes before also Patrick Biggs struggles hard with the lower part of the slope. He clocks as second.



13:13 - Vajdic, Bernard (SLO):

But now, after the first starters, Bernard Vajdic is the first to score a new minimum time in the finish.



13:14 - Herbst, Reinfried (AUT):

Reinfried Herbst is even stronger. He enlarges his margin up to the second intermediate. That´s the clear lead.



13:16 - Viletta, Sandro (SUI):

Now it´s Sandro Viletta´s turn. His line is not good enough to keep the lead but he crosses the finish line as third.



13:17 - Sasaki, Akira (JPN):

Neither Akira Sasaki manages to stay in front. The Japanese drops back by one position on two.



13:19 - Albrecht, Daniel (SUI):

After Daniel Albrecht will have completed his run we won´t have a new leader on top because the Swiss drops out.



13:21 - Deville, Cristian (ITA):

Cristian Deville is no candidate for a place in the front today. He loses constantly and must accept place five in the finish so far.



13:22 - Rocca, Giorgio (ITA):

His compatriot Giorgio Rocca completes his second run. Will he manage to stay in front? No, after a good time at the intermediate, also the Italian misses a gate and drops out.



13:24 - Missilier, Steve (FRA):

Steve Missilier, the Frenchman, can do much better. He defends his margin up to the finish and becomes the new leader.



13:24 - Brolenius, Johan (SWE):

As we get to know Johan Brolenius has been disqualified.



13:25 - Miller, Bode (USA):

Next one will be Bode Miller. That´s his chance to become Hahnenkamm champion now.



13:27 - Miller, Bode (USA):

Well, he won´t be in front in the slalom result but what´s his so far third place worth for the Combined ranking?



13:27 - Raich, Benjamin (AUT):

Benjamin Raich is going down the piste now. Will he be able to catch up some positions?



13:29 - Raich, Benjamin (AUT):

He shows a great performance in the middle part but in the end he loses a bit again. Nevertheless, it´s enough for place one so far.



13:31 - Larsson, Markus (SWE):

Markus Larsson attacks the poles, but he is a bit too risky. That doesn´t pay off because he drops out.



13:32 - Schönfelder, Rainer (AUT):

Schoenfelder now. Does he threaten Raich´s time? Yes, he does. The Austrian is the new leader ahead of his team mate.




13:35 - Kostelic, Ivica (CRO):

Ivica Kostelic starts off with a leap of two tenths. But he is too far away from the poles to keep his margin. In the finish he becomes third and is 35 hundredths behind.



13:36 - Janyk, Michael (CAN):

Big mistake for Michael Janyk in the last section of the Gaslern! He loses more than one second and drops back on seven so far.



13:38 - Ligety, Ted (USA):

Skiing a bit insecurely in the middle part, Ted Ligety loses half a second. He cannot catch up this deficit up to the end. Place three for the US-American!



13:42 - Palander, Kalle (FIN):

Also Kalle Palander becomes a victim of the Gaslern. A fatal mistake in the lower section makes him drop back on 16. That´s bad luck!



13:44 - Myhrer, Andre (SWE):

Can Andre Myhrer defend his lead now? He finds a clean line in the upper part but loses this good rhythm further on. He clocks as sixth finally.



13:45 - Mölgg, Manfred (ITA):

Now Manfred Moelgg tries to take over the lead. And he is good oon his way but in the last section he loses time like many athletes before. It´s place five for him while Schoenfelder is still in front.



13:47 - Neureuther, Felix (GER):

A fantastic time for German Neureuther at the intermediates, he is almost a second ahead. But then a mistake makes him lose all his margin and he crosses tthe finish line as second 16 hundredths behind the Austrian.



13:49 - Byggmark, Jens (SWE):

Last year´s champion Byggmark enlarges his margin tenths by tenths. Although he has difficulties in the end as well he clocks the clear new minimum time.



13:51 - Lizeroux, Julien (FRA):

Julien Lizeroux instead cannot defend his little margin. He must accept place two behind Byggmark. Will that be enough for a place on the podium?



13:52 - Matt, Mario (AUT):

Neither Mario Matt threaten´s Byggmark minimum time. He takes over position two behind the Swede.



13:53:

Only Jean Baptiste Grange can beat him now. We will see it in a few minutes.



13:55 - Grange, Jean-Baptiste (FRA):

That´s exciting. Grange is still in front in the upper part. But then he loses time on Byggmark and is behind. Can he catch this up?



13:55 - Grange, Jean-Baptiste (FRA):

Yes, he does! By a hair, 15 hundredths of a second, he wins this slalom ahead of Byggamrk and Matt.



13:56 - Grange, Jean-Baptiste (FRA):

Congratulations to the French who scored the second slalom victory in a row!



13:56:

Now only the combination racers will follow but the slalom result is clear!



14:00 - Lizeroux, Julien (FRA):

Julien Lizeroux becomes forth, Schoenfelder fifth and Neureuther sixth.



14:01:

That was our coverage from the Kitzbuehel weekend. With Grange´s victory we say goodbye from the Hahnenkamm races.



14:03:

The next men´s World Cup race will be the night slalom in Schladming on January 22nd at 6 pm (CET). Until then!