Maze Leads Giant Slalom; Shiffrin Is Fifth
Mikaela Shiffrin completed her first run in a Winter Olympics with a smile and a measure of success considering the sloppy, rainy conditions on Tuesday. She was in fifth place halfway through the women's giant slalom.
Tina Maze of Slovenia, who was the first racer out of the start house, had the lead, 0.52 seconds ahead of Jessica Lindell-Vikarby of Sweden. Lindell-Vikarby, who raced second, is the top-ranked giant slalom skier in the world. Nadia Fanchini of Italy was third after the first run.
Shiffrin, whose best event is the slalom but who has two World Cup podium finishes in giant slalom this winter, was 0.91 behind Maze and 0.26 seconds out of third place.
The race was contested in a heavy rain that made the snow mushy and the visibility difficult. Shiffrin, wearing bib No. 6, skied the steeps aggressively and quickly but lost time on the flatter section, where she executed a few turns that were less crisp and perhaps a little late.
It was in the flats that Maze, last season's overall World Cup champion, made much of her lead.
Shiffrin was not disappointed after the race. Asked how the racecourse was holding up, Shiffrin answered with an enthusiastic: 'Great.'
Asked if the rain was beading on her goggles or impeding her visibility, she said, 'I didn't really notice, so I guess not.'
Shiffrin, who arrived in Russia on Friday night, said she was nervous at the top of the mountain waiting for the race to start.
'But when I was in the gate I wasn't,' she said. 'I just wanted to ski.'
Shiffrin said she hoped to correct her minor missteps in the flats.
'I pushed the line a little bit too much in the flats and got a little bit of pressure below the gate,' she said. 'It's normally not that fast especially in these conditions. I just have to loosen up my legs and go for it.'
The race also featured the final appearance by Julia Mancuso at the Sochi Games. Mancuso struggled through most of her run Tuesday and then skied out with several gates to go. Mancuso, who won the gold medal in giant slalom at the 2006 Turin Olympis, is currently ranked 29th in the World Cup giant slalom standings. Mancuso, who won a bronze medal in the super combined here, has said that the Sochi Games could be her last Olympics, but Tuesday she indicated she might be back in 2018. 'At the beginning of season I felt like there was no way I'd be back, but I really wanted a medal,' she said. 'Having that magical day inspired me. I love to ski, so we'll see.'
Maze has not won a giant slalom this season but had several top results in that discipline last season including a second place at the world championships. The defending world champion, Tessa Worley of France, is not at the Sochi Games because of a knee injury. The bronze medalist at last year's world championships, Anna Fenniger, is in fourth place after Tuesday's first run, six hundredths ahead of Shiffrin.
Post a Comment for "Maze Leads Giant Slalom; Shiffrin Is Fifth"