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Linus Strasser ensures a premiere at the slalom classic under floodlights. Tanguy Nef is the best Swiss in tenth place.
The pedestal
- 1. Linus Strasser (GER) 1:46.00
- 2. Atle Lie McGrath (NOR) +0.03s
- 3. Manuel Feller (AUT) +0.39
In the finish area of Kitzbühel, Linus Strasser had called the Ganslernhang a “Schweinsberg”. Now, three days later, the German secured his third World Cup victory – of all things in the slalom classic in Schladming. With the first victory of a German on the Planai, the 25-year-old managed a feat that all of his compatriots have so far been denied.
Behind the fifth-placed halfway through the race, only 21-year-old athlete Lie McGrath and Manuel Feller finished on the podium. Both wrote special stories: For the Norwegian, who started in Schladming for the first time and shed tears of joy at the finish, it was the first podium ever. For the local hero it was the deserved reward for an unleashed performance in the second round. Feller showed a flawless ride, especially on the steep slope, which carried him from 28th place to 3rd place.
Kristoffer Jakobsen, who had distanced the competition by 8 tenths of a second or more in the first run, became a tragic figure on the Planai. As a few times before, the Swede couldn’t stand the pressure in the decision and threaded the third goal. Because Giuliano Razzoli, who was second at half-time, was also eliminated, nothing stood in the way of Strasser’s victory. Clément Noël and Lucas Braathen, who were still in 3rd place after the first run, fell far behind in the second run.
The glassy slope was very selective and claimed a few well-known victims in the first round: Alexis Pinturault, for example, retired after a messed-up run, and Croatian Filip Zubcic also slipped away. With Fabio Gstrein and Johannes Strolz, an Austrian duo had to give up early in their home race.
The Swiss
- 10. Tanguy Nef + 0.64
- 13.Luca Aerni +0.79
- 15. Daniel Yule + 1.20
- 16. Loïc Meillard +1.23
- 18. Ramon Zenhauser +1.45
- 21.Sandro Simonet +1.51
- 25. Marc Rochat + 2.11
- OUT Reto Schmidiger
Daniel Yule’s second place in Wengen remains the only podium place for the Swiss slalom skiers this winter. Of the 8 Swiss Ski athletes in the 2nd run, only Tanguy Nef made it into the top 10. The man from Geneva, who was in 8th place, lost 2 places on his 2nd appearance, but was only a quarter of a second behind the podium. Luca Aerni made up 8 places in the decision and finished 13th.
As in Kitzbühel, Ramon Zenhäusler and Yule said goodbye to the podium decision after the first appearance. Halfway through the race, the deficits of the two were one and a half and almost 2 seconds, in the end it was another disappointment for the duo with ranks 15 and 18. Loïc Meillard’s 16th place – after 10th place halfway through the race and an unsuccessful 2nd heat – did not live up to the expectations of the French-speaking French. Reto Schmidiger failed in his comeback season again in the second run.
Here’s how to proceed
For the technology cracks, the spectacle in Schladming served as the last dress rehearsal before leaving for Beijing. The men’s Olympic slalom is then scheduled for February 16. After the Olympic Winter Games, the athletes will return to the World Cup with two slaloms in Garmisch at the end of February (25/26 February).