VAL D’ISERE, France, 20 December 2005 — Austria’s Michaela Dorfmeister scored her first win of the season in an Alpine ski super-G on Sunday to extend her lead in the overall World Cup standings.
Just 24 hours earlier, Dorfmeister had criticized Val d’Isere organizers for going ahead with a downhill in poor weather.
Conditions were perfect, however, on Sunday and Dorfmeister, eighth on Saturday, clocked one minute 17.59 seconds for the 22nd win of her career, her eighth in super-G.
“This is certainly the most important victory in my career,” said Dorfmeister. “This is a measure of revenge after what happened yesterday (Saturday). At least we could get back to proper skiing. I did pretty well. It felt very easy.” Her team mate Alexandra Meissnitzer, who came third in Saturday’s downhill, was second, 0.49 seconds behind, with Canadian Emily Brydon earning her first podium place of the season in third, with 1:18.15. “I had a good run, especially on the upper part of the course, but Michaela was just too strong,” Meissnitzer said.
Brydon set the early pace and then nervously waited for the favorites to ski down.
The 32-year-old Dorfmeister, who had come close to victory since the start of the season with four podium finishes, will be one to watch in the speed events of the Turin Games in February, where she will chase an elusive Olympic gold medal.
American Lindsey Kildow, who won Saturday’s downhill, finished joint fourth with Switzerland’s Fraenzi Aufdenblatten in the final race of the early-season classic meeting, celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
France’s Carole Montillet, the Olympic downhill champion who had placed sixth on Saturday, frustrated her home fans in this picturesque French Alpine resort by finishing 10th. Ingrid Jacquemod, who comes from Val d’Isere and was the only Frenchwoman to win a World Cup race last season, ended up a disappointing 14th.
