Stephan Eberharter. world ski news : Eberharter clinches overall and Super-G titles - 13 March 2003 - 21:45
KVITFJELL, Norway (AP) _ Stephan Eberharter won the last super-G of the season at Lillehammer's Olympic course Thursday, clinching the men's World Cup overall title and the super-G championship. The Austrian ace completed Olympiabakken's course in 1 minute, 36.97 seconds, edging Norwegian veteran Lasse Kjus by 0.41 and third-place teammate Hannes Reichelt by 0.43.
"It's been difficult to confirm last season's results," Eberharter said while celebrating in the finishing area.
Stephan Eberharter
"Today I didn't want to think about the overall. I thought only about winning the super-G title and I made a perfect run."
Eberharter, who had already secured the downhill title this season, also won last year's overall and super-G crowns.
Eberharter with Janica Kostelic
He'll turn 34 in two weeks, but hasn't decided if he'll retire from the sport.
"When you're in such great shape you shouldn't think about it," said Eberharter, who also won the super-G gold meal in last month's World Ski Championships in
Switzerland. "But early in the summer I'll decide."
American Bode Miller only managed 20th out of 25 finishers_ leaving him out of the points. That helped Eberharter take an unbeatable 273-point lead in the overall standings.
Only two races _ a slalom and a giant slalom _ remain this weekend with 100 points going to the winner.
Liechtenstein's Marco Buechel led Eberharter by 24 points in the super-G standings going into the race, but also blew his chance after managing just 17th place. He finished runner-up in the final super-G standings.
For Kjus, it was the best result of the season.
"I always had confidence in myself," he said. "It was good to get a good result this year."
Kjus, who won two overall titles in the 1990s, praised Eberharter.
"He's been acting like a monster this year ... what he's been doing is tremendous," he said.
Daron Rahlves, the only other American, lost his balance before hitting a gate on the upper part of the course and didn't finish.
Rahlves, who was third in Wednesday's downhill and second in the downhill standings, broke through here in 2000 with back-to-back downhill wins and a fifth in the super-G.
The women's super-G was scheduled later Thursday.
AP, 13.03.2003
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