U.S. Ski Team Women Struggle in Flachau

Flachau, Austria – Four-time Olympian Sarah Schleper, the only American to qualify for a second run, wheeled off course and did not finish as 15,000 fans blanketed the Hermann Maier slope for Tuesday’s night World Cup slalom ski race in Flachau. Germany’s Maria Riesch matched Finland’s Tanja Poutiainen for the win as the Audi FIS Alpine World Cup produced a rare tie for the second time in four days, with Riesch widening her World Cup overall lead on American Lindsey Vonn. Nastasia Noens of France, was third.nWith timing down to the hundredth of a second, ties are exceedingly uncommon on the World Cup ski racing circuit, yet Tuesday night’s tie comes mere days after Norway’s Aksel Lund Svindal and Cyprien Richard of France shared the Adelboden giant slalom victory on Jan. 8.

Fans lined both sides of the slope and stuffed the finish, including legendary ski racer Hermann Maier, to cheer on racer after racer as they battled their way down a challenging hill in Maier’s home town. Adding to the difficulty this year were a series of rolls that were created for the race.

“The hill’s great they built some artificial rolls in it. It’s definitely more challenging then it has been here. Snow conditions were great, slick and everything was good,” said U.S. Ski Team Women’s Head Coach, Alex Hoedlmoser. “We were expecting quite a bit out of the girls today and the bottom line is, we just didn’t execute.”

The USA showed up with its game faces on, but was unable to get the momentum going. Schleper, the only American to qualify for a second run in 28th, went out of the gate charging before going down on her hip and sliding off course.

Riesch, laid down a fast second run, to tie first run leader Poutiainen for the win. With her third place finish, Noens earned the first World Cup podium of her career.

Schleper joined the list of DNFs from the first run that included Olympic champion Vonn (Vail, Colo.) and Hailey Duke (Boise, Idaho). The U.S. Ski Team’s Resi Stiegler (Jackson Hole, Wyo.) and Laurenne Ross (Klamath Falls, Ore.) did not qualify for a second run.

“Everybody was as best prepared as everyone could have been,” said Hoedlmoser. “But things just didn’t come together today.”

Canada’s Alpine Ski Team received a much-needed boost in morale, thanks to a 14th place finish Tuesday night from Pointe-Claire, Quebec’s Anna Goodman, her best result of the season. Goodman laid down a solid first run and then attacked the course the second time around.

“I’m really happy,” said Goodman. “I had a pretty good first run and the second run, I just totally laid everything on the line and it paid off.”

Goodman, 24, suffered a serious knee injury in January 2010, and although she was back in action in time for the Vancouver Olympics it’s taken her a while to regain her confidence. Her previous best World Cup result this season was a 24th place finish in Aspen, Colo., in November.

“It’s the first time since tearing my knee that I really went for it and trusted myself,” said Goodman, adding she wasn’t affected by a minor concussion she suffered a week ago. “Coming back has been harder than I anticipated. But on a day like today, that all disappears and everything seems good.”

Goodman’s Canadian teammates, however, suffered a similar fate to the U.S. Ski Team women. Marie-Michele Gagnon, of Lac-Etchemin, Quebec, was skiing well on her first run before a mistake pushed her back to 33rd, with only the top 30 qualifying for the second run. Elli Terwiel, of Sun Peaks, British Columbia, and Eve Routhier, of Sherbrooke, Quebec, did not qualify. Marie-Pier Prefontaine, of Saint-Sauveur, Quebec, did not finish her first run and Brittany Phelan, of Mont Tremblant, Quebec, and Erin Mielzynski, of Guelph, Ontario, were disqualified.

The next stop on the World Cup tour is Maribor, Slovenia Jan. 15-16, where the women will race a slalom and giant slalom.

OFFICIAL RESULTS
Audi FIS Alpine World Cup
Flachau, Austria – Jan. 11, 2011
Slalom

1. Maria Riesch, Germany, 1:42.52
1. Tanja Poutiainen, Finland, 1:42.52
3. Nastasia Noens, France, 1:43.04

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