Italy’s Dominik Paris was clearly one of the medal contenders in the men’s Super-G, but having drawn the third position, he had very little information on the course when his turn came.
But having been one of the best speed skiers in the world so far this season, he let it rip and took the lead at 1:24.20. And then he waited.
The next skier was France’s Brice Roger, but his 1:24.61 was only good enough for second. In ninth position was a real threat, Austria’s Vincent Kriechmayr, the season leader in the Super-G. He looked good, but the clock read 1:24.29, so Paris stayed in the lead.
The racers continued and another Frenchman, 38-year-old Johan Clarey, who had won a silver in the Super-G at Kitzbuehel 10 days prior, made an excellent run, but he too finished in 1:24.29, tied for second.
And so Paris waited, and waited … and he was finally the winner!
While Paris has been a consistent medalist on the World Cup tour, with 28 medals, this was his first World Championships medal since 2013, when he won a silver in the Downhill. Now he’s World Champion in the Super-G.
And the rewards for Kriechmayr and Clarey were also splendid, as both were first-time medalists at the World Championships. For Clarey, he proved that even 38-year-olds can compete with the best on one day when it matters.
The U.S. men also had a good debut, with Steven Nyman tying for eighth place, his best-ever Super-G finish at a Worlds 9and second-best ever), and Ryan Cochran-Siegle in 11th.
¶
Off the snow, American Super-G winner Mikaela Shiffrin shared her plans for the rest of the Worlds on Twitter:
“It has been a tough decision for me, but my team and I have finally decided that competing in AC will be too much to manage in this World Championships. This season has already been beyond my wildest dreams and it still isn’t over.”
And
“The most difficult thing through it all has been balancing my desire to race as much as possible with managing my energy levels both physically and mentally and not taking anything for granted. We believe the SL and GS are where I need to focus my energy. Good luck to all!!”
This means Shiffrin would max out at three wins, which would make her the 10th woman to win three in a single World Championships. It was first done in 1933 and the last time was in 2007 by Swede Anja Parson, also in Are!
(In case you were wondering, winning four golds in a single Worlds has only been done twice, both times by men: Toni Sailer (AUT) in 1956 and Jean-Claude Killy (FRA) in 1968.)
The Worlds will continue Friday with the women’s Alpine Combined and the Men’s Downhill on Saturday. Look for results here.
FIS Alpine World Championships
Are (SWE) ~ 5-17 February 2019
(Full results here)
Men’s Super-G: 1. Dominik Paris (ITA), 1:24.20; 2. tie, Johan Clarey (FRA) and Vincent Kriechmayr (AUT), 1:24.29; 4. Christof Innerhofer (ITA), 1:24.55; 5. Adrien Theaux (FRA), 1:24.57; 6. Josef Ferstl (GER), 1:24.59; 7. Brice Roger (FRA), 1:24.61; 8. tie, Mattia Casse (ITA), Steven Nyman (USA) and Adrian Sejersted (NOR), 1:24.70. Also in the top 25: 11. Ryan Cochran-Siegle (USA), 1:24.73; … 23. Bruce Bennett (USA), 1:25.82.
Women’s Super-G: 1. Mikaela Shiffrin (USA), 1:04.89; 2. Sofia Goggia (ITA), 1:04.91; 3. Corinne Suter (SUI), 1:04.94; 4. Viktor Rebensburg (GER), 1:04.96; 5. Nadia Fanchini (ITA), 1:05.03; 6. Ragnhild Mowinckel (NOR), 1:05.05; 7. Francesca Marsaglia (ITA), 1:05.13; 8. Ilka Stuhec (SLO), 1:05.15; 9. Lara Gut-Behrami (SUI), 1:05.37; 10. Federica Brignone (ITA), 1:05.43. Also in the top 25: 22. Alice Merryweather (USA), 1:07.22.
