GAP 2011. GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany – After Thursday’s men’s downhill training run in Garmisch, Didier Cuche named Christof Innerhofer the favorite for the gold medal going into Saturday’s world championship race. Indeed the Italian, freshly crowned super G champion, carried his speed from Wednesday’s victory straight into downhill training.

Christof Innerhofer of Italy skis in the Men's Downhill Training during the Alpine FIS Ski World Championships on the Kandahar course on February 10, 2011 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. (February 9, 2011 - Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images Europe)

The 26-year-old from South Tirol who won the super G by more than a half a second was more than a full second faster than anyone else in downhill training on Thursday. He finished in 2 minutes, 0.71 seconds, followed most closely by Aksel Lund Svindal, 1.05 seconds back and then fellow Italian Dominik Paris, 1.69 seconds behind.

A few racers deliberately stood up before crossing the finish line – Cuche being one of them – finishing fourth, 1.82 seconds off of Innerhofer’s time although he was well over a second and a half in the lead during his run.

Didier Cuche of Switzerland skis in the Men's Downhill Training during the Alpine FIS Ski World Championships on the Kandahar course on February 10, 2011 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. (February 9, 2011 - Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images Europe)

Bode Miller was also putting down a fast run but stood up several hundred meters before the finish line and ended up ninth. Innerhofer, however, said he was giving it his all.

Bode Miller of the United States of America skis in the Men's Downhill Training during the Alpine FIS Ski World Championships on the Kandahar course on February 10, 2011 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. (February 9, 2011 - Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images Europe)

“I gave really much. I tried to push. I made a great run,” he said, adding that he was indeed buoyed by the lasting adrenaline of his win on Wednesday. “I had a good feeling today … a good feeling all this year. But in the training I was [many] times really fast, but we will see for Saturday. A race is race and training is training.”

Svindal, on the other hand, had a bad feeling on the Kandahar.

“It was extremely difficult,” he said of his run. “The course is not as difficult, it’s the snow and the light that make it so tough. I did not feel very good. I think it felt a little crazy. The thing is it’s not so dangerous, I think. It’s dangerous because it’s tiring and you can’t see. I don’t like this and I don’t think a lot of other guys like it – except for Innerhofer seems to love it. But as long as the safety is OK, there will be a race and we will try our best.”

Paris, 21, who landed his first World Cup podium last month in the downhill at Chamonix and also did very well in Garmisch in 2009, nabbing Junior World Championship silver medals in downhill and combined plus the bronze in super G, is part of the Kandahar course fan club.

“It’s very good. It’s very bumpy here, difficult to go fast, but I like the turns and the flat in the top. I have a good feeling there,” Paris said, adding that he felt inspired by Innerhofer’s super G win, but he was not giving 100 percent effort in the first downhill training run. “I think I give 80 or 90 percent. It’s very icy but I had a good grip up there, it’s more because it’s so bumpy so then it’s difficult to make good turns.”

Cuche said Innerhofer will be the man to beat on Saturday, pointing out that course conditions won’t change.

“It’s really bumpy. It’s going to stay the same until the race,” Cuche said, adding that he stood up during his run in order to preserve energy for Friday’s training. “It was to save a little bit of power for tomorrow, because it’s making me more tired than the super G from yesterday and not having a good time. But I think tomorrow I can push through. Innerhofer is so strong. That’s the favorite for the gold medal.”

Following his DNF after skiing off-course in Wednesday’s super G race, Canadian Erik Guay finished seventh in training on Thursday. He said the Kandahar is a different animal than he’s ever seen it – a far cry from the slope on which he won the super G race at World Cup finals last March.

“There’e s a lot of chatter to it – hard snow, a lot of bumps. It’s not my favorite course,” he said. “Actually … that’s not that true. It’s my favorite course, but the way they prepared it, its pretty challenging. Usually it’s nice, grippy snow here – firm and dry. They just went overboard and iced it and now it’s rattly and rock-hard everywhere. It’s turnier also than the other years. There’s some sections I came in expecting to be fine and had to chuck my skis sideways.”

There is a big right turn through a very narrow corridor about halfway down the men’s downhill course where racers come within about a half-meter of the fence. Guay expects the current snow conditions to make this area a hot spot for either making it or breaking it in Saturday’s race.

“That section has always been that narrow but with good snow, so you can come in arcing. Now it’s coming in and your skis are just bouncing all over the place,” he said. “I think a lot of guys were toning it down today. In the race, you expect jumps are going to be 10, 15 meters bigger, speeds are going to be higher … it’s going to be challenging.”

by Shauna Farnell
FISalpine.com
Thursday 10 February 2011

World Junior DH champion Sejersted leads 2nd ladies` DH training

In the second ladies‘ downhill training the current World Junior downhill champion Lotto Smiseth Sejersted of Norway posted the fastest time with 1 minute, 49.55 seconds, gunning down the course with bib No. 33. She edged off the American Julia Mancuso carrying bib No. 10 to second place by .59 seconds. Italy’s Elena Fanchini in bib No. 21, finished third, 1.07 behind the winning-pace.

“This is a good hill for me even though it certainly is bumpy from top to bottom. To be fast, you have to ski conservatively without being too stiff. I did not make any mistakes but my line was still a bit low in certain places”, Mancuso said with the finish area crowd that included a group of American fans roaring her on.

The freshly crowned super G champion, Elisabeth Goergl took 13th in the final downhill training on Thursday. “I did not have an optimal run and made mistakes already in the first two turns and also in the flats but I know what to do better. I am confident I can step it up a notch on the race-day,” Goergl said.

Maria Riesch, who is sidelined by a fever, skipped the second downhill training.

Her closest friend and biggest rival Lindsey Vonn came up with a creative solution to avoid risking too much and gaining too much speed by pacing down the course with all her clothes on. As she is still suffering from the consequences of the concussion, she opted to take it easy and not push herself too hard. “The main aim today was to figure out if I can concentrate the whole way down and compete without having the headache come back,” Lindsey said. “I needed to make sure I can defend my downhill title feeling totally healthy.”

Lara Gut was the fastest Swiss in seventh place finishing 1.52 seconds behind Sejersted. Wednesday’s leader of the first downhill training Marie Marchand-Arvier of France finished 14th today.

On Friday, the ladies’ super combined will start at 10:00 local time with the downhill on the Kandahar slope, while the slalom will take place on the Gudiberg at 14:00 local time. The Austrian Kathrin Zettel is the titleholder in this discipline.

FISalpine.com
Thursday 10 February 2011