Rocca wins World Cup slalom; Miller crashes out again 

KRANJSKA GORA, ( 27/02/2005 14:04 ) Slovenia (AP) _ Giorgio Rocca of Italy won his third World Cup slalom on Sunday, while Bode Miller crashed out of yet another race to diminish his lead atop the overall standings. Rocca lost some ground at the top of the piste, but charged masterfully at the lower section to produce a winning time of 1 minute, 34.95 seconds. Unheralded Andre Myhrer of Sweden surprised the field to take second place, 0.21 seconds behind. Benjamin Raich, who bridged his deficit against Miller in the overall standings to a mere 31 points, came third, 0.25 seconds off the winning pace.

"It's fantastico," Rocca said, adding that he had the least pressure to win as he was no longer in the running for any trophies. "It was very satisfying for me, but I have won other races at other places too and did not have other objectives or priorities like some others have," Rocca said. Miller continued his woeful record in the slalom, straddling a gate at the top of the hill. It was the eighth slalom the American had failed to finish this season, including at the world championships earlier this month.

"I had a bad weekend," said Miller, who also slid off the course in the giant slalom on Saturday. "I didn't score a point but my confidence is not dented. I still have the speed races. "You cannot think about the big picture while you're skiing. I don't think about it. I don't think beyond a race," he added. Kalle Palander missed another golden opportunity to secure his first season title. The Finn led from the hut just like in Saturday's giant slalom, but he again failed to maintain the pressure in the second run and finished 12th, 1.24 seconds behind.

Rocca was third after the opening run but he hit a higher gear in the tougher lower section of the second run to forge an unassailable time. Most eyes this weekend were on the rivalry for the overall title between Raich and Miller _ easily the two best skiers on the men's circuit this year. Both had a win apiece in the slalom coming into the race, but it was Raich who went into the fray with a decisive advantage. Miller last won in mid-December at Sestriere and crashed out of the seven other races, while Raich had never failed to finish a race all season. He also clinched three podiums as well as a victory.

The advantage proved well-grounded as Miller dropped out again. He was 14th after the opening leg. Raich, who turns 27 on Monday, said he slowed after seeing Miller foil his run, to make sure of securing valuable points. "I did take some speed off and that's why I finished where I did. I went safe, but I was also still fast," the technical specialist said. Miller held a 191-point cushion ahead of Raich coming into this weekend but now remains on 1,253 points, while Raich collected 160 to move well within reach of the American's lead. Miller will have to dig deep to rediscover his early season form in the upcoming speed races if he is to become the first American to win the overall title in 22 years.

Phil Mahre, the only American to have won it, claimed the overall title in three consecutive years from 1981. "Bode is good in the speed events and he is stronger than me now, but if you give me a chance I will catch it," Raich warned.  
  
 

Bode, no run-of-the-Miller at tail end of World Cup
 
KRANJSKA GORA, ( 26/02/2005 19:07 ) Slovenia (AP) _ No ski. No points. No problem. Bode Miller, the world's most dominant Alpine racer, lost a ski and slid one-legged out of a key giant slalom on Saturday, losing valuable points in his quest to become the first American to win a World Cup overall title in 22 years. But that's not likely to bother him. "He's definitely not going to think about it. If he wins the overall, fine. If not, OK, he's not good enough _ bad luck," United States ski team spokesman Marc Habermann said after Miller crashed out of yet another race.

Miller's biggest rival, Benjamin Raich of Austria, won the race and crept to within 91 points of Miller in the overall standings with only seven races to go, including three technical events. "It's pretty close, but Bode has an advantage as he is very strong in the downhill and there are more speed events to go," Raich said. The American has already won a slalom this season, at Sestriere in mid-December, but he has also crashed out on all of the seven others _ a bad omen for Sunday's slalom, where Raich will be looking for a chance to jump into the lead.

Miller led by .32 seconds at the first interval before his right leg slammed into a bump, dislodging his ski. He continued down several gates, then realizing the futility, stopped at the side-fencing. It was almost a replica of a combined race at the world championships this month when Miller lost a ski in the downhill and tried to complete the course on one leg, sending the audience into ruptures. "It shouldn't happen, but it does happen and skis can come off," Habermann said. "You can't blame the skis and Bode is not blaming the skis. It's just bad luck." Raich won on the steep and icy Podkoren course, clocking a combined time of 2 minutes, 43.73 seconds.

Fellow Austrian and reigning giant slalom world champion Hermann Maier was second, 0.45 seconds behind, while first-leg leader Kalle Palander of Finland finished third, 0.79 seconds off the winning time. "It's a big victory for me here," Raich said. "Bode went out, but you never hope the opposition will go out."  
   

Raich wins World Cup giant slalom in Kranjska Gora 
 
KRANJSKA GORA, ( 26/02/2005 18:26 )  Slovenia (AP) _ Benjamin Raich led an Austrian 1-2 on his way to a key victory in a World Cup giant slalom that gave him a closer glimpse of the overall title on Saturday. Bode Miller lost a ski while in the lead at the first split on the second run and slid off the course, giving up valuable points in his hunt to become the first American to win the World Cup overall title in 22 years. Raich won on the steep and icy Podkoren course, clocking a combined time of 2 minutes, 43.73 seconds.

Fellow Austrian and reigning giant slalom world champion Hermann Maier was second, 0.45 seconds behind, while first-leg leader Kalle Palander of Finland finished third, 0.79 seconds off the winning time. "It's a big victory for me here," Raich said. "Bode went out, but you never hope the opposition will go out." Miller led by .32 seconds at the first interval before his right leg went wide on a turn and his ski got dislodged after slamming into a bump. He continued skiing down through several gates and then stopped at the side-fencing. "It was a really hard hit," said U.S. ski team spokesman Marc Habermann. "It shouldn't happen, but it does happen and skis can come off.

"He is obviously disappointed. Bode skied a straight line, but it was bumpy out there and he skied right into a hole. He wanted to keep skiing but it was no use." Palander was the first skier out of the hut and carved out a 0.28-second lead on the first run. But the Finn began to relinquish his cushion in the mid-section on the second run and watched his chances of securing his first season title fade away. It was Raich's first giant slalom title this season after reaching two World Cup podiums and taking a silver medal at the world championship this month. The technical specialist, who won here three years ago, not only ended a two-year streak by Miller at Kranjska Gora but also took over the giant slalom standings.

Most importantly, however, Raich also significantly whittled down Miller's 191-point lead in the overall standings. He now has 1162 points, only 91 points behind Miller with seven races to go, including three technical events. But Raich doesn't want to start calculating. "No. That never works. To think of that tactically will never work. I will race to win every race I enter," he said. "It's pretty close, but Bode has an advantage as he is very strong in the downhill and there are more speed events to go." Despite his misfortune Saturday, Miller leads the World Cup overall standings with 1253 points and is still on target to become the first American to win the title in 22 years. Phil Mahre, the only American to have won it, claimed the overall title in three consecutive years from 1981.

Conditions were close to ideal Saturday with softly sprinkling snow causing only minor visibility problems on a mostly sun-flushed course.