ARE, Sweden, 20 February 2005 — Michaela Dorfmeister won a super-G yesterday to register her fourth World Cup win of the season and close in on compatriot Renate Goetschl, who leads the discipline’s standings.
The Austrian, in her 14th World Cup season, needed all her experience to navigate Are’s Olympia course in difficult weather conditions after fresh falls of snow and under low cloud.
She finished in one minute 7.53 seconds with teammate Alexandra Meissnitzer 0.45 seconds behind and Italian Lucia Recchia third in 1:08.05.
Goetschl finished only 10th and now leads the super-G by a mere two points from Dorfmeister with two races to go.
“The snow was soft today and you had to go with a lot of feeling,” Dorfmeister said. “The light was not so good, but the course was good.”
“At this moment it looks like I prefer the snow a little softer,” she added with a smile. “When the course is this short you can’t make a mistake.”
“I was half a second in front, so I must have had a good race. This year with the victory in the super-G, I can go home with a big smile, and tomorrow I’ll try my best in the giant slalom.”
The 31-year-old won the first super-G of the season last December at Lake Louise and followed that victory with downhill wins at Santa Caterina and Cortina D’Ampezzo in Italy last month.
She failed to find form at the world championships in Santa Caterina earlier this month, however after winning super-G at thee 2003 championships. “I went home (after the championships) and I was sick for two-three days, so my boyfriend made me some tea,” Dorfmeister said with a laugh. “Now I’m back.”
“I think this is the best answer to the championships. The super-G is a big goal for sure.”
Local favorite Anja Paerson, gold medalist in the world championship super-G, was fifth.
Croatian Janica Kostelic, who came fourth, earned enough points to leapfrog 24th-placed Tania Poutiainen of Finland to take the World Cup overall lead.
Walchhofer Wins Second Downhill in a Row
In Garmisch-Partinkirchen, Germany, Austrian Michael Walchhofer won his second Garmisch downhill in a row yesterday, flying down the challenging Kandahar piste in one minute 56.50 seconds. The 29-year-old beat up-and-coming compatriot Mario Scheiber by just 0.09 of a second with the same sort of fearless and aggressive skiing that put him on top of the podium on Friday.
Olympic downhill champion Fritz Strobl made it an Austrian clean sweep, finishing in one minute 56.95.
Overall World Cup leader Bode Miller of the US, who came third on Friday, was fourth. Austrian favorite Hermann Maier, second on Friday, had to be content with seventh place.
“I was really lucky to make it because there were lots of ruts on the course, it was bumpy and twice I lost my line,” Walchhofer said.
