Kvitfjell, Norway – Swiss upstart Beat Feuz landed the first Audi FIS Alpine World Cup podium of his young career with a downhill victory in Kvitfjell. The Friday race was a make-up from the wind and fog scrapped Audi Birds of Prey downhill originally scheduled for December in Beaver Creek, Colo., home of the 2015 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships.nRecently crowned 2011 downhill World Champion Erik Guay of Canada was second followed by Austrian Michael Walchhofer. Walchofer, who will retire at the end of the season, moved within 50 points of World Cup downhill leader Didier Cuche of Switzerland.

Guay, of Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, was crowned world downhill champion in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, in his last race in February and produced another smooth performance on one of his favorite hills Friday to record a second successive top-three finish. The result is the 15th World Cup podium of Guay’s career and moves him ahead of retired Canadian ski racing legend and Crazy Canuck Ken Read, who had 14. Guay is now second all-time among Canadian men behind Steve Podborski, who recorded 20 career World Cup podiums.

Guay’s performance was the highlight of a day to remember for Canada’s men’s team, with veteran Jan Hudec, of Calgary, finishing a season’s best 10th and young Ben Thomsen, of Invermere, B.C., cracking the top 20 with an 18th-place finish.

“It was great in Garmisch. I’m really happy to be able to follow it up with another podium, so it didn’t seem like a one-shot deal,” said Guay. “To be ahead of some of the Crazy Canucks, it’s very special, for sure. I will keep working on it!

“I think there’s a couple of areas I could have cleaned up but it was a pretty solid run. I took advantage of my start position and the conditions were in my favour,” Guay added.

Guay, 29, has had a lot of success at Kvitfjell, winning the super G in 2010 and coming second in the downhill in 2007.

“With Erik the challenge is to manage expectations and pressure,” said Paul Kristofic, head coach of the Canadian men’s team. “It was good to see him have a really solid performance in the very next race (after the World Championships). There’s always a little bit of luck with start numbers but you have to use it and take advantage of it. By no means was it a perfect run but his approach was good.”

Steven Nyman, of Heber, Utah, posted the top American finish with 25th, followed by Middleton, Idaho’s Erik Fisher posting his first downhill points this season in 27th. America’s best downhill racer, Bode Miller, of Franconia, N.H., did not compete Friday, opting to spend the rest of the season with his daughter in San Diego, Calif.

“The first six or seven guys had a bluebird beautiful day, no wind. Then as the top guys started the wind picked up and the light got flatter and flatter. So it was interesting race,” said Sasha Rearick, head coach of the U.S. men’s ski team. “Steven (Nyman) skied the bottom of the mid section to the finish pretty well which was much better execution than in training and Fisher scored his first points of the year in downhill while running when the light wasn’t great.

“We’ve got two young guys here, Tommy Ford and Wiley Maple. They’re working hard and gaining the experience they need to take the next step in speed races,” Rearick added.

Ford, of Bend, Ore., finished 53rd while Aspen, Colo.’s Maple bested him by crossing the finish line in 42nd. In between them, Ted Ligety of Park City, Utah, who is best a giant slalom racer, finished 42nd.

OFFICIAL RESULTS
Audi FIS Alpine World Cup
Kvitfjell, Norway – March 11, 2011
Downhill

1. Beat Feuz, Switzerland, 1:47.39
2. Erik Guay, Canada, 1:47.44
3. Michael Walchhofer, Austria, 1:47.50