VAL GARDENA, Italy, 18 December 2005 — Marco Buechel became only the second man from Liechtenstein to win a men’s World Cup downhill race when he triumphed in the Dolomites yesterday with a time of one minute 27.99 seconds.
Buechel snatched victory by just 0.02 seconds from Austria’s former world champion Michael Walchhofer to repeat his compatriot Markus Foser’s success at Val Gardena in 1993.
Eric Guay of Canada continued his sparkling form, taking third place to go with his runners-up spot in Friday’s super-G.
The Saslong Classic, one of the highlights of the season, had been delayed by snow showers and poor visibility in the Italian resort and eventually took place on a shortened course.
There was disappointment for the local fans who had hoped to see 36-year-old Kristian Ghedina claim a record fifth victory at the venue but he had to settle for fourth place despite fighting back well from a slow start.
The 34-year-old Buechel, who won a Super-G race in Garmisch in 2003 and had a second place in downhill at Val d’Isere last season, was elated after his win.
“It has been a major dream of mine to win a special event like this one. I really felt I had a chance today but it is just amazing,” he said.
Walchhofer, one of Austria’s most reliable hopes for gold in downhill at February’s Olympic Games in Turin, was left to rue the narrowness of his defeat.
“It is tough to lose by a such a small margin and I wanted to add this course to my list of classics won,” he said. “However after the way I skied I didn’t think I was going to win — I just didn’t nail it today.” Canadian Guay was satisfied with his podium finish after his performance just 24 hours previously.
“I wanted a podium in downhill and this is a good start especially after all of the energy I spent yesterday. Given the conditions, I am very pleased with third place,” he said.
American Bode Miller, world champion in downhill and the overall World Cup winner last term, finished eighth.
