Feb 14 by Edward Stoner

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WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS EDITION // DAY 13

TODAY Gates open, 8 a.m., followed by live pre-show, Redtail Finish Stadium, Beaver Creek. Ladies’ slalom, 10:15 a.m., Redtail Finish Stadium, Beaver Creek. Men’s slalom qualifying, 10:15 a.m., Golden Peak Stadium, Vail. Medals Ceremony, 6:30 p.m., Championships Plaza (Solaris), Vail. Men’s slalom Public Bib Draw, following Medals Ceremony, Championships Plaza (Solaris), Vail. CeeLo Green free concert, following Public Bib Draw, Championships Plaza (Solaris), Vail. DOMINIQUE TAYLOR | SPECIAL TO THE DAILY

American Ted Ligety, center, celebrates winning gold in the men’s giant slalom at the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships with silver medalist Austrian Marcel Hirscher, left, and bronze medalist Frenchman Alexis Pinturault#10.qxp_Liz on Friday night the medals Championships Liz Leeds Vail Valley 2015 World Championship Leeds at Vail Valley 2015ceremony World 10 xat 3.5 2/2/15 7:51 PMPlaza Pagein 3 Vail.

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Ted strikes gold Ted Ligety tops his nemesis, Austrian Marcel Hirscher, for GS gold at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships on Friday. A30-38 TOWN TALK

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ANSWERLAND The reporters at the Vail Daily will do their level best to find answers to questions you might have about life in our fair valley. Email your questions to NEWSROOM@VAILDAILY.COM

Ted Ligety powers around a gate during the first run of the 2015 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships men’s giant slalom in Beaver Creek on Friday. Ligety overcame a 0.24-second deficit to win the U.S. Ski Team’s first gold medal of the Championships. TOWNSEND BESSENT | TOWNSEND@VAILDAILY.COM

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Vol. XXXIV, Issue 243

A16 B38 B1 A29

The Vail Daily

| Saturday, February 14, 2015 | A3

Gros reflects on competing at ’99 Worlds Local ski racer recalls last World Championships held in U.S. By John LaConte jlaconte@vaildaily.com

VAIL — Swept up in the atmosphere of the World Championships, Vail local Sacha Gros got back on his racing skis this week. It had only been 12 years. You may recognize Gros from Vista Bahn Ski Rentals at the base of Gondola One, where he spends his days tending to his family’s shop, which has been there since the ’70s. The last time the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships were in the U.S., in 1999, Gros used the shop as a base of operations — a dugout, of sorts — while he prepared to compete in some of the biggest races of his life. A member of the U.S. Ski Team at the time, Gros competed in the World Championships combined

and slalom, skiing out in the slalom portion of the combined but putting on a great show for the local fans in the slalom, which was held in Vail on Lindsey’s run, then called International. He finished 19th. “I’ll never forget that feeling, coming over International and seeing the whole crowd in Vail in the bleachers,” Gros said this week. “My family was in the stands with flags and stuff; it was awesome.” Gros’ sister Dominique was 14 at the time. “It was a very special moment for our family,” she said.

“I’ll never forget that feeling, coming over International and seeing the whole crowd in Vail in the bleachers. My family was in the stands with flags and stuff; it was awesome.”

RACING THROUGH THE FINISH

Gros skiing off the slopes and right into his parents’ shop in the finish area. “Having my parents ski shop right there was awesome,” said Gros. “It was our home, right there. It was 20 feet away from the finish line. I went in, changed, unbuckled my boots, then came back out to take everything in and appreciate what it was.”

The winner of that race was Kalle Palander, of Finland, who also remembers it well. “Vail is much bigger now than it was at that time,” Palander said. “But, I went to check the bar, The Underground, and it’s still there. It was the same bar where I had a party for my win. We had dinner first with Pepi at the Gramshammer then we went to that bar.” Palander says he remembers

Sacha Gros stands at the finish line of the Korbel Charity Cup in Vail on Wednesday. Gros raced with team Faber Audio Visuals, which lost to Team USSA in the final head-to-head competition.

Sacha Gros Former U.S. Ski Team member

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A4 | Saturday, February 14, 2015 | The Vail Daily

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BEAVER CREEK — All good things must end, and this two-week celebration of the world’s greatest ski racing is no exception. After two weeks of nonstop free bigname concerts as well cultural and community events, the Closing Ceremonies for the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships are Sunday afternoon. “We’re so happy the world came to visit, and we hate to see them leave,” said Ceil Folz, president of the Vail Valley Foundation and the organizing committee. Sunday afternoon’s closing ceremonies will be packed, but shorter than the opening ceremonies of two weeks ago, mostly because no one likes long goodbyes. You’ll be part of it with all kinds of audience participation.

PASSING THE TORCH We’ll pass the flag and the torch to St. Moritz, Switzerland, our sister city and host of the 2017 World Championships. We’ll crank up some fireworks, because this is America. While the Chinese invented gunpowder and fireworks, we shoot off more than anyone … at least we will Sunday. There will be daytime fireworks because the Closing Ceremonies begin around 4 p.m. Sunday in Beaver Creek’s Redtail Stadium following the final event, the men’s slalom. Legendary soul singer Hazel Miller will perform and keep performing until the fun runs out. And they’re giving away all kinds of wonderful stuff.

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What: Closing Ceremonies for the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships. When: 4 p.m. Sunday, following the conclusion of the men’s slalom. Where: Red Tail Stadium, Beaver Creek. Cost: Free. More information: Visit www.vailbeaver creek2015.com. It’s a way to say thank you to the world for visiting and to the community for being such gracious hosts. “We’re so proud of our community,” Folz said. “The size of the crowds has been amazing and so has the support. They’ve cheered for every racer, and not just the Americans or the ones they knew.”

WE’RE NOT DONE YET We’re not done yet, of course. The women’s slalom is today, featuring Eagle-Vail’s Mikaela Shiffrin and Vail’s Sarah Schleper, who’s skiing for Mexico after a decade and a half with the U.S. Ski Team. In Vail at Golden Peak, dozens of racers will compete for a spot in Sunday’s men’s slalom. If get to Redtail Stadium and the grandstands are already full, you can make your way around the west side where race crews have carved stairs into the snow and you can stroll up to a viewing area on the side of the course — the Grouse Mountain side. Because today’s and Sunday’s races are slaloms, you’ll be right on top of the action, said Jen Brown, communications director for Beaver Creek. “We hope people will stick around for the Closing Ceremonies and show their support by cheering all the way to the last racer,” Brown said. Staff Writer Randy Wyrick can be reached at 970-748-2935 and rwyrick@ vaildaily.com.

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A30 | Saturday, February 14, 2015 | The Vail Daily

20 15

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Ted Ligety brings it home on Friday First gold at last for the Americans By Shauna Farnell Special to the Daily

BEAVER CREEK — It was nearly 50 degrees at the bottom of the race hill by the time the second run of the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships men’s giant slalom race kicked off on Friday. The toll on the snow was evidenced by one racer after another losing their lead when they crossed the finish line. The overall description of the snow on the bottom of the course was “sticky.” Marcel Hirscher, winner of four of the five of the giant slalom races on the World Cup this season, led the field after the first run. But then Ted Ligety entered the building … reminding the world not only of why his nickname is “Mr. GS” but also why every poster, card and advertisement for these Beaver Creek races bear his image. The 30-year-old American pretty much blew the statistics off the chart with his win on Friday. He landed the first U.S. gold medal of these World Championships. It was his fifth consecutive giant slalom win on the Birds of Prey course. He became the only skier to win three consecutive gold medals in the same discipline. And he made it look very pretty. Shoulder just inches from the ground around every gate, Ligety knew he had to throw down his most aggressive effort for the second run. He was sitting in fifth place after run No. 1, 0.24 seconds behind Hirscher. When he crossed the finish line in the second run, he had a lead of 1.23 seconds.

NERVOUS WATCHING German skier Felix Neureuther came down. He skied what he thought was a good run, but it was 1.10 seconds behind Ligety. Then it was France’s Alexis Pinturault. He skied what he believed was a good run and landed 0.88 seconds behind Ligety … enough for the bronze. Then came the last man on course — the guy who has found a way to beat Ligety in the four of the last five GS races and also tied Ligety for the World Cup GS title last season — Marcel Hirscher. The Austrian wanted it. He hit the first split with a green light. Then he soared through the second split with a green light. The green light flashed on his third split — 0.08 over Ligety. Then the Austrian crossed the finish line. He was 0.45 seconds back … good for silver. But nobody could touch Ligety. “It was definitely nerve racking watching the other guys come down,” Ligety said. “Marcel has been amazingly strong in giant slalom all season. To see him a couple hundredths ahead in the last split and knowing he’s the kind of guy who can make up time anywhere … it was a huge relief.” Although Ligety already had every piece of premium hardware known to ski racing: two Olympic gold medals, four World Cup GS crystal globes and five World Championships medals before 2015 — including four golds — he called this fifth

JUSTIN Q. MCCARTY | SPECIAL TO THE DAILY

Ted Ligety, of the United States, celebrates with some Champagne after winning a gold medal during the giant slalom of the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships on Friday in Beaver Creek.

FIS ALPINE WORLD SKI CHAMPIONSHIPS MEDALS COUNT Gold Silver Bronze TOTAL Austria

U.S.A.

Slovenia

Switzerland 1

Canada

France

DOMINIQUE TAYLOR | SPECIAL TO THE DAILY

Sweden

Germany

Marcel Hirscher is in his element during the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships men’s giant slalom in Beaver Creek on Friday. Hirscher came just shy of a gold medal, finishing in second place to take a silver for the Austrians.

Norway

A FAMILIAR GROUP

Championship gold his “sweetest.” “I definitely haven’t been skiing as well this year as I have in years past. Getting my butt handed to me by this guy all the time wasn’t that enjoyable,” Ligety said in the post-race press conference, indicating Hirscher sitting next to him. “It’s nice to be able to go home and hit the reset button. It’s nice to get that feeling back … a little of my old self.”

Hirscher was pleased with his silver medal, saying that he absolutely could not have skied any faster. “It was important to know that Ted had an outstanding run. It was easy to make a decision in the start house. I thought to myself, ‘I have two chances: no medal or go for it,’” the Austrian said. “I skied my personal 100 percent. I’ve given everything. Ted is just skiing brilliant … especially here at Birds of Prey.” For Pinturault, who has shared many podiums with both Ligety and Hirscher

in the last few years, including the bronze medal at the Sochi Olympics, also said he gave it his all Friday for the Championship bronze, not easy considering he was sick in bed with a fever earlier this week. “I was completely sick with temperature two days ago, in bed all day long,” the Frenchman said. “My goal was to be at the start today. Ted was starting in front of me. I heard everyone down there, ‘Oh Ted! Yeah!’ and I thought he made it. But it doesn’t change anything. You’re just

MEN’S GS, A34

The Vail Daily

20 15

| Saturday, February 14, 2015 | A31

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

American gold returns to home slopes Home crowds cheer U.S. Ski Team to first gold of Championships By Melanie Wong mwong@vaildaily.com

BEAVER CREEK — It’s been 26 years since a gold medal hung around the neck of an American skier on home snow at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships — that is, until Friday — when Utah’s Ted Ligety won the giant slalom by a decisive margin in front of a wild crowd of U.S. fans. The last World Championships gold medal won by an American at home was by Tamara McKinney in the alpine combined on Feb. 2, 1989, when the Championships were first held in Vail. Friday’s wide, sweeping course suited “Mr. GS,” as he beat out the rest of the field by nearly half a second for the win. Ligety said the victory was especially sweet coming during a season where he hasn’t always dominated the podium like in past years. “This one is maybe a little bit more emotional than some other (wins), because this year has been a little more of a struggle,” he said, comparing it to past years when he’s enjoyed winning streaks. “This one was a bigger question mark as far as how I was skiing, and to be able to come through and pull it off is awesome.” Other American results included Californian Tim Jitloff in ninth, Tommy Ford in 19th, Brennan Rubie in 26th and David Chodounsky in 29th. Jitloff called Ligety an inspiration to his teammates. “I’m proud that Ted was able to do it today. It’s great for the people here. They’ve been waiting for it,” he said. “It’s something that I aspire to. With how I’ve been skiing and my results, I hope that I’ll be joining him on the podium.”

DOMINIQUE TAYLOR | SPECIAL TO THE DAILY

Ted Ligety keeps his cool in the final moments of a fantastic second run during the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships men’s giant slalom in Beaver Creek on Friday. Ligety overcame a 0.24-second deficit to win the USA’s first gold medal of the Worlds.

AND THE CROWD WENT WILD Veteran ski journalist and constant World Cup presence Patrick

AMERICANS, A35

DOMINIQUE TAYLOR | SPECIAL TO THE DAILY

David Chodounsky tackles the Screech Owl section with ease during the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships men’s giant slalom in Beaver Creek on Friday.

DOMINIQUE TAYLOR | SPECIAL TO THE DAILY

Tim Jitloff heads in to the finish of his final run during the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships men’s giant slalom in Beaver Creek on Friday. Jitloff finished ninth overall.

Ligety brings deliverance for U.S. Ski Team BEAVER CREEK — Thank you, Ted. This was starting to get grim. The U.S. was running out of chances for gold. There was the men’s GS on Friday — good chance — but Marcel Hirscher is a major pain in the tush, and we say that in the most respectful way with regard to the Austrian

overall champion. Yes, Mikaela Shiffrin has a real good chance of being golden in today’s women’s slalom. But did you want it all hanging on Shiffrin to win to keep the U.S.A. from being blanked in the gold-medal

Chris Freud On Skiing

department for Worlds? Sure, anything could happen in men’s slalom, but not really. The Americans still don’t have much of a shot in slalom. The U.S. Ski Team had to have a win either on Thursday or today. Thanks, Ted. Go get

’em today, Mikaela.

WINNING A GREAT RACE We can go through all the bits of history — first to three-peat in Championships GS, first American gold on home snow since Tamara McKinney on Feb. 2, 1989; he’s now the most decorated American skier in Worlds history

— but what makes Ligety’s win tremendous was the race itself. It was a great one. This was not Ted slamming the first run by 1 second or so, and then taking a victory ride in his second run. There were five racers packed into .24-hundredths of a second

ON SKIING, A36

A32 | Saturday, February 14, 2015 | The Vail Daily

20 15

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Austrian or not, Hirscher is hard to hate Three-time World Cup champ still has slalom on Sunday By Shana Farnell Special to the Daily

BEAVER CREEK — You’d think it’d be easy to hate Marcel Hirscher. The Austrian was poised to rob Ted Ligety of his fifth straight win at Beaver Creek on Friday and the Americans of their first FIS Alpine World Ski Championships gold medal. The Austrian is also blowing Ligety away in the World Cup GS standings and is lined up to win his fourth straight overall title, something he was once told he could never do as a tech specialist. He is extremely likely to walk away from these World Championships with four medals.

HUMBLE GUY Then you watch the 25-year-old smile as he skis through the crowd after his leading the first run in Friday’s giant slalom, stopping to give his girlfriend a quick kiss. After winning the gold medal in the combined, you hear him take time out of his victory speech to wish the best for Ondrej Bank, the Czech skier who sustained the horrible crash, thus allowing Hirscher his key starting position in the second run (and who, by the way, is doing just fine and is already home and recuperating). When Ted Ligety nabbed the gold medal Friday, Hirscher, was the first to run out into the snow to congratulate him. You constantly hear the guy compliment other racers, crack jokes in English and appear to be, as much as you want to believe otherwise, genuinely humble. “I gave my 100 percent, for sure,” Hirscher said after his silver medal run Friday, his third medal of these Champs after his gold in combined and gold in the Nations Team Event. “I have to say my run was good. But Ted’s was outstanding.” It’s safe to say that Hirscher is a super star in his country, the Peyton Manning (or depending on how you look at victories, maybe the Tom Brady) of Austria. His ski brand — Austria’s Atomic — has a line of skis, helmet and goggles in his name. Growing up in the small town

TOWNSEND BESSENT | TOWNSEND@VAILDAILY.COM

Marcel Hirscher barrels down the Golden Eagle section of the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships giant slalom in Beaver Creek on Friday. Regardless of Friday’s result, Hirscher is likely going to emerge from Beaver Creek as one of the stars of Worlds. of Annaberg in Lower Austria, Hirscher’s father operated the ski school where the future champion was first introduced to skis at the age of 2, shortly after he could walk. Hirscher entered his first competition at age 6 and made his World Cup debut just before his 18th birthday in 2007. By the end of the next season, he was a regular face on the slalom podium. By 2009-10, he was also a big threat in GS and combined. Before the 2011 World Championships, he broke his ankle, ending his season. Since then, he’s been back with a vengeance, winning the 2012, 2013 and 2013 World Cup overall globes. Although he puts himself at risk when he occasionally straps on long skis for super G and downhill, Hirscher is a natural thrill seeker. In the summer time, it’s not uncommon to see him donning full body armor on a motocross course.

FAST NONETHELESS No matter which of his specific

successes you call him out on, Hirscher is always quick to play it down, always acknowledging the individuals and circumstances that helped it happen. In the Nations Team Event, Hirscher won all of his heats, a major factor in his team winning gold, but of course he credited his whole team with the effort. When he won alpine combined gold earlier this week, he said, “I wouldn’t have won with bib 31. You always need luck to be in first position.” Judging by the evidence, Hirscher could turn out to be the luckiest guy at these World Champs. And he hasn’t even gotten to his best event yet. “I’m pretty tired at the moment,” he said regarding Sunday’s slalom race. “But let’s see how it goes. There are a lot of favorites in slalom. If they inject a lot of water on the course, I can definitely ski fast.” Stop making excuses, Marcel. Everyone knows you can ski fast no matter what.

Marcel Hirscher, of Austria, looks at his final time for the men’s giant slalom race to see he finished just behind Ted Ligety during the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships on Friday in Beaver Creek. While most of the crowd was understandably rooting for Ligety, Hirscher is ill-suited for the role of villain at these Championships. JUSTIN Q. MCCARTY SPECIAL TO THE DAILY

Complete men’s giant slalom results from Friday Daily staff report newsroom@vaildaily.com 1 LIGETY Ted USA 2:34.16 2HIRSCHER Marcel AUT 2:34.61 3 PINTURAULT Alexis FRA 2:35.04 4 NEUREUTHER F. GER 2:35.26 5 OLSSON Matts SWE 2:35.39 6 NANI Roberto ITA 2:35.57

7 MUFFAT-JE. V. FRA 2:35.71 8 EISATH Florian ITA 2:35.93 9 JITLOFF Tim USA 2:36.04 10 SCHOERGHOFER P. AUT 2:36.28 11 JANKA Carlo SUI 2:36.39 12 COOK DustinCAN 2:36.42 13 KRISTOFFERSEN H. NOR 2:36.59 14 SANDELL Marcus FIN 2:36.89 15 DOPFER Fritz GER 2:37.01 16 ZUBCIC Filip CRO 2:37.02

17 SIMONCELLI D. ITA 18 PHILP Trevor CAN 19 FORD Tommy USA 20 LUITZ Stefan GER 21 TORSTI Samu FIN 22 BROWN Phil CAN 23 KRYZL Krystof CZE 24 BORSOTTI G. ITA 25 CAVIEZEL Gino SUI 26 RUBIE Brennan USA

2:37.05 2:37.41 2:37.62 2:37.83 2:37.89 2:37.99 2:38.01 2:38.35 2:38.41 2:38.47

27 ZURBRIGGEN Elia SUI 2:38.65 28 READ Erik CAN 2:38.73 29 CHODOUNSKY D. USA 2:38.90 30 MURISIER Justin SUI 2:38.95 31 WINDINGSTAD R. NOR 2:38.99 32 ZAMPA Andreas SVK 2:41.46 33 KOSI KlemenSLO 2:41.75 34 RAPOSO Charlie GBR 2:42.01 35 PRISADOV Stefan BUL 2:42.60 36 SIMARI B.C. J. ARG 2:42.96

37 ZVEJNIEKS K. LAT 2:43.37 38 GOWER Jack GBR 2:43.47 39 BARWOOD AdamNZL 2:43.94 40JUNG Dong-hyun KOR 2:44.46 41 MARCHANT A. BEL 2:45.12 42 KOLEGA Elias CRO 2:45.67 43 KIM Hyeon-tae KOR 2:46.88 44 BENIAIDZE Alex GEO 2:47.77 45 VUKELIC William CRO 2:47.98 46LAIKERT Igor BIH 2:48.63

47 BARBU Alexandru ROU2:49.49 48 KRISTGEIRSSON E. K. ISL 2:49.60 49 CARVALLO Nicolas CHI 2:50.14 50 KYUNG Sung-hyun KOR 2:50.88 51 VAN DEN B. J. BEL 2:51.85 52 ZAKURDAEV Igor KAZ 2:53.75

The Vail Daily

20 15

| Saturday, February 14, 2015 | A33

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Here we go with the women’s slalom race

Vertical Drop: Distance: Avg. Slope: Max. Slope:

THE PICKS OK, everyone but that idiot Freud went with Ligety for Friday. In my defense, by picking Hirscher I jinxed him? Weak sauce, Freud Shauna Farnell, Vail Daily: Shiffrin Chris Freud, Vail Daily: Hansdotter for the jinx. Pat Graham, AP Denver: Shiffrin. Melanie Wong, Vail Daily: Shiffrin.

Vertical Drop: Distance: Avg. Slope: Max. Slope:

Ladies’ Weather Downhill & Super-G Start

249’ | 76m 865’ | 264m 30% | 16.9° 51% | 26.9°

Lech-Zuers Schuss

Vertical Drop: Distance: Avg. Slope: Max. Slope:

308’ | 94m 745’ | 227m 45% | 24.4° 51% | 32.2°

The Gauntlet

Vertical Drop: Distance: Avg. Slope: Max. Slope:

255’ | 78m 606’ | 185m 46% | 24.9° 53% | 28.0°

Vertical Drop: Distance: Avg. Slope: Max. Slope:

335’ | 102m 926’ | 282m 39% | 21.3° 57% | 29.5°

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Ladies’ GIANT SLALOM Start

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Golden Eagle Jump

Ladies’ Slalom Start

394’ | 120m 1,989’ | 606m 20% | 11.5° 39% | 21.2°

Harrier Jump

Lift

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RUSSI’s Ride

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Finish +

Redtail Jump

unt ain

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Watch out: It’s monotonous, yes, but there’s a reason it’s monotonous. It’s true. Racers must carry speed from the top onto the flats down low. Gaining time on Harrier and Redtail is next to impossible. The favorites: Hansdotter, Shiffrin, Maze, Zettel and Pietilae-Holmner. The Americans: Shiffrin (2), Resi Stiegler (19), Paula Moltzan (32), Hailey Duke (36) and Megan McJames (44). Our favorite person not representing America: Sarah Schleper (77) will be racing again for Mexico.

The Apex

use

THE RACE

Lift

THE NUMBERS

Format: It’s a two-run race with the best-combined time winning. The top 60 racers get a second run. However, the top 30, the racers to watch will go first during the final run in a flip. That means the fastest racer in the first run goes 30th in the second. There are a mere 120 racers today. Stats: The course starts at 9,548 feet and drops 613 feet during the course of 2,099 feet of distance. Weather: The high should be 51 degrees with sun. With this forecast comes our token watch of the piste during the second run. Defending slalom champion: Nobody. This is the first time we’ve had a women’s slalom at Beaver Creek since Birds of Prey and Raptor opened.

Ladies’ Downhill & Downhill Combined Start

376’ | 115m 2,007’ | 612m 19% | 10.8° 23% | 12.8°

Birds of Prey Lift

Can Shiffrin win today? Absolutely. Will she win? That would be the $64,000 question, a question which should probably be upgraded for inflation. As we have seen at these World Championships thus far, the Americans have had shots at medals, but the rest of the world has great skiers who have been interfering with the script. Very rude of them. Along those lines, meet Sweden’s Frida Hansdotter (bib No. 4). The Swede leads Shiffrin in World Cup points, 420-379. At 374 points is Slovenia’s Tina Maze (1). If you haven’t been paying attention, shame on you. Maze is most definitely in the

The RUNway

Gro

AMERICAN UPSETS

ess

So, when it was announced in 2010 that the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships were coming here in 2015, Mikaela Shiffrin was 14. Very few people had heard of her because she was still one year away from making her World Cup debut. Both of those sentences amaze and depress me. After all, most kids at age 14 or 15 are going to high school, not starting a career. Madame Shiffrin, at the weary age of 19, and turning an elderly 20 next month, already has a resume for the ages. It now includes: ■ Two World Cup slalom titles. ■ Twelve career World Cup wins. ■ A World Championships gold in slalom. ■ An Olympic gold in slalom. Just take a moment to think about what you had done by the time you were 19 year old. Um, learned how to do a keg stand in college maybe? And so we come to the women’s slalom today at 10:15 a.m. and 2:15 p.m., where Madame Shiffrin will be the crowd’s choice and is certainly among the favorites. Shiffrin (bib No. 2) started the season by finishing — gasp — 11th in the Levi, Finland, slalom. It was really funny to see the sturm und drang after that finish. It was just one race. Things settled down as she finished fifth in Aspen, fourth in Are, Sweden, won back-to-back races in Kuehtai in Tirol, Austria, and Zagreb, Croatia. Shiffrin wrapped the pre-Worlds slalom slate with third in the night slalom at Flachau, Austria.

2015 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships Ladies’ Course Map - Beaver Creek

Exp r

cfreud@vaildaily.com

By Chris Freud

mix for her third gold and fourth medal. In a shocking twist — not — the Austrians should be well represented with Kathrin Zettel (3), Nicole Hosp (7) and Michaela Kirchgasser (10). (Again, if you’ve been paying attention to the races so far, you already know these names.) Sweden’s Maria Pietilae-Holmner (5) and the Czech Republic’s Sarka Strachova (6) should also be in the mix. And, having said all that, the one thing that this set of Worlds has not had is a surprise winner, someone completely out of the blue.

Cin

Anyone rooting for Shiffrin?

Ladies’ Combined SLALOM Start

Vertical Drop: Distance: Avg. Slope: Max. Slope:

697’ | 212m 2,224’ | 678m 33% | 18.4° 50% | 26.7°

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Frenchman Alexis Pinturault soars down Golden Eagle during the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s giant slalom in Beaver Creek on Friday. Pinturault finished in third place to secure Franceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s second medal of the Championships.

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American Tommy Ford leaves everything on the course during the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships men’s giant slalom in Beaver Creek on Friday. Ford finished 19th.

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From page A31

Lang said that in his 45 years in ski racing, he’s never heard a roar as loud as what came up from the crowd when the final racer, Austrian Marcel Hirscher, crossed the line and it was clear that Ligety had held the lead. “It was like a plane taking off,” Lang said. Ligety said being home gave American racers a definite boost.

| Saturday, February 14, 2015 | A35

“I love racing in the U.S. That’s one of the real anomalies for us. We’re always racing in Europe, and having those extra comforts of home and the friend and family support — it’s huge,” he said. Other U.S. skiers got the same enthusiasm, including Chodounsky, who skied to the finish to deafening chants of “USA! USA!” Jitloff said the support from the home crowd was extremely motivating during the final turns of the course, when

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going into the second run — Hirscher, Italy’s Roberto Nani, Germany’s Felix Neureuther, France’s Pinturault and Ligety. And, to win the first red, white and blue gold, the script for Ligety had to be going through Hirscher, the three-time defending World Cup overall champion, the master of all things tech. When Ligety dropped 5-hundredths of a second at the first interval, the groan from the crowd and the media was audible. The theme of the day and generally for GS races here is get the speed up top and keep it going down on the lower part of the course. With Ligety running 26th in the flip, we had seen a lot of racers start to lose time and continue to see that green turn into red. And then came the jets. After Screech Owl, Ligety found extra time. He found time in over Golden Eagle. He even found time in The Abyss. As the name indicates, you’re not meant to gain time in a place defined as “a deep or bottomless chasm.” Yes, it’s the “intangible” of greatness, which Ligety does possess. This wasn’t his first comeback on this slope. He was fourth and 25-hundredths out in December in during the Birds of Prey GS behind Austria’s Benni Raich, Pinturault and Hirscher before that rally. The biggest factor was Ligety’s experience. Now 30, he’s had 40 starts here,

DOMINIQUE TAYLOR | SPECIAL TO THE DAILY

Ted Ligety races to gold during the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships men’s giant slalom, and there was much rejoicing. After 12 days of the Championships, the U.S. Ski Team finally was on the top step of the podium. dating back to 2002, be they NorAms, World Cups or Championships. Hirscher is turning 26 next month and Friday was his 15th start here. It’s not home snow that won Ligety the race. After all, Ligety was defending a title won in Schladming, Austria. Having raced every flake of snow that’s fallen on this hill won Ligety the race. Ligety’s first start here was a NorAm super-G, in which he finished in a tie for 21st. In 20th place was Cody Jenick, a local whom I covered when he raced for Battle Mountain, a local high school. (That’s a lark. Cody can

wear that as a badge of honor. “I beat Ted Ligety way back when!”) Unlike his competitors, Ligety has run this course enough to know how the extra ticks are gained, and the result is golden. Thank you, Ted.

MEANWHILE, BACK IN THE HOME COUNTRY Under the category of “You really can’t please everyone,” here’s the latest brouhaha in the Austrian press.

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| Saturday, February 14, 2015 | A37

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Marcel Hirscher races to second place in the men’s GS on Friday at the FIS 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships.

ON SKIING

From page A36

You’d think that all in the Alpine Republic would be happy, given the way its national team has taken a 2-by-4 to the world here. (And I’m not Austria bashing. My last name is Freud.) After all, “Land of Mountains,” the nation’s anthem, has been sung five times for five golds. The thing is that “Land of Mountains” has undergone a lyrical change. Its fourth line used to be “You are home to great sons,” and has been changed to “You are home to great daughters and sons,” to reflect the times. This caused a great kerfuffle when it happened. The thing is that old version — “great sons” only — is the anthem being played at the medal ceremonies here. Let’s make it clear that this is no way criticizing anyone involved on the American end of things — the Vail Valley Foundation, the kids singing beautifully, and everyone involved with the ceremonies. Everyone here got the old version. They’re singing the lyrics they got and so dutifully learned. Back in Austria, however, this has renewed the debate over the anthem. I vote for “daughters and sons,” simply on the basis that racers such as Anna Fenninger, Michaela Kirchgasser and Nicole Hosp are all “great daughters.” It could be worse. In 1999, Australia’s Zali Steggall was a complete surprise winner in women’s slalom. She got her gold and then the wrong anthem completely was played. Whoops. The good news is that all involved probably agreed on the words of the anthem played on Friday night. Thank you, Ted.

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AMERICANS

From page A35

racers were tired. “(The cheers) pull you down. It’s magnetic,” he said. “With the Americans, you can’t tell if you’re doing well or doing bad. They’re fired up anyway and are super supportive. You’re like, ‘What is it? Is it good? Is it bad?’ A screaming crowd is something that gets me fired up. If I’m in training and there aren’t people out there, it’s hard to bring the same intensity as you do when you have people screaming their brains out.”

SOLID DAY FOR AMERICANS Besides Ligety’s gold, the day proved to be a solid race for the other Americans. Several racers are returning to form after season-ending injuries. Brennan, of Snowbird, Utah, is returning from a leg fracture. He admitted to fighting some nerves, but

was happy to make the second run. “It’s been a tough year for me, so I was excited to perform on a home hill and get a second run,” he said. Ford, who also sat out the last two seasons with injuries, said he’s gradually building his form and was encouraged by the American support. “It’s fun being in the lift line or walking around the stadium and everyone is just psyched that you’re out here doing it and want to see you go fast. It’s welcoming here. In Europe, it’s fun — there are a lot of people — but they aren’t from home. This is the home crowd,” he said. Chodounsky, of Minnesota, said that he achieved one of his major season goals — to race the giant slalom at the World Championships. U.S. fans will also see him skiing at the slalom on Sunday. “I’m proud to be here. I’m proud to be an American, and I’m proud to be representing in from the home crowd,” said Jitloff.