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Brunner wins Jr slalom gold, Shiffrin hooks tip 2nd run

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Younger skiers kicked off the World Junior Championships with a statement as 18 year old Austrian Stephanie Brunner took the slalom gold medal ahead of Sweden's 18 year old Paulina Grassl and Slovakia's 17 year old Petra Vlhova.

American Mikaela Shiffrin was a casualty of the second run.

“I've never given a course report like that in my life,” said US women's team leader Trevor Wagner. “We were basically telling them to ignore the gates and ski what's there.”

Warm temperatures and deteriorating conditions forced organizers to alter the schedule to slalom. It was warm and wet on the bottom and colder and drier up top. “It was a real difficult day for everybody,” said Wagner. “Really tough. Had there been good snow on the hill it would have been awesome. It's a great hill. But it was warm yesterday and it never really froze overnight. They had everybody slipping and kept throwing chemicals, but little holes turned into three foot holes in no time.”

The result was some unexpected faces on the podium. Brunner had not won a race at any level since December, and that was a FIS-B circuit GS. Her top Europa Cup finish, and only score, is a 24th. She was, she said, surprised.

"I didn't expect this at all, but I am very satisfied with how it turned out. I look forward to the future now and cannot wait to see what it brings. First we have more competitions in Roccaraso though and I will do my best to fight for more medals."

“Brunner deserved to be on the podium. She skied a good first run and didn't make a lot of mistakes,” the coach said. “But the rest was basically attrition.”

Silver medalist Paulina Grassl, for example, had been tenth after the first run.

"I would never have expected this, but I had faith in myself. ... I dared to go all in the whole way even if I didn't know if it would work."

Wagner said the first run fell apart at the steep top of the course. “Once you got off the steep, in the middle of the course you go go for it, but you had to be ready to shift gears in the middle. With Mikaela, we gave her everything in the course report, but she didn't shift gears.”

Shiffrin finished fourth in the first heat.

“The second run fell apart in the middle. She was right on her way to taking it,  then right at the bottom she hooked a tip on a gate that hardly had any rut at all.”

It was a common problem on the day. A number of first run leaders went out late in the second run including Emelie Wikstrom who had been second after the first heat.

“Both courses were fine sets,” Wagner said. “But the second run coming out of last flush, there must  have been six gates to the finish and one of those was a little under seven meters, but was set straight enough to make. Coming out of that flush there was a lot of crashing into the finish. A lot of chaos.”

Wagner said there was not much the organizing committee could have done to correct the situation. High winds last week had dried the snow out preventing significant compacting. When that storm passed, he said “it got hot, and the slope faces East with no big mountain to block the sun.”

The US had one finisher, Foreste Peterson who clocked in 25th, from the 67th start. Anna Marno did not start. Jacqueline Wiles, Lauren Samuels and Abby Ghent all went out in the first run.

Canada had Tianda Carroll in 22nd and Randa Teschner 29th with Stephanie Marcil and Natalie Knowles both being disqualified in the second run.

Shiffrin photo courtesy Roccaraso 2012

Roccaraso (ITA)
FIS Junior World Ski Championships
Ladies' Slalom

Rank Bib FIS Code Name Year Nation Run 1 Run 2 Total Time FIS Points
 1  8  56217 BRUNNER Stephanie  1994  AUT   50.18  51.01  1:41.19  6.14
 2  29  506557 GRASSL Paulina  1994  SWE   51.66  50.65  1:42.31  12.89
 3  3  705423 VLHOVA Petra  1995  SVK   50.87  51.82  1:42.69  15.18
 4  23  425929 MOWINCKEL Ragnhild  1992  NOR   52.29  50.73  1:43.02  17.17
 5  27  155699 PAULATHOVA Katerina  1993  CZE   51.35  51.78  1:43.13  17.83
 6  16  506399 HECTOR Sara  1992  SWE   51.37  52.03  1:43.40  19.46
 7  17  197319 BAUD Adeline  1992  FRA   52.78  50.69  1:43.47  19.88
 8  5  506341 WIKSTROEM Emelie  1992  SWE   49.14  54.44  1:43.58  20.55
 9  2  355055 BUEHLER Rebecca  1992  LIE   50.94  53.12  1:44.06  23.44
 10  35  425916 FAUSA Chloe Margrethe  1992  NOR   51.90  52.18  1:44.08  23.56
 11  19  425982 WINQUIST Annie  1993  NOR   52.43  52.47  1:44.90  28.50
 12  48  516319 SUTER Corinne  1994  SUI   54.20  50.96  1:45.16  30.07
 13  28  206497 FILSER Andrea  1993  GER   53.69  51.95  1:45.64  32.97
 14  21  506664 FJAELLSTROEM Magdalena  1995  SWE   54.53  51.50  1:46.03  35.32
 15  4  516219 NUFER Priska  1992  SUI   52.47  53.63  1:46.10  35.74
 16  24  485665 KEDRINA Anastasia  1992  RUS   54.20  51.92  1:46.12  35.86
 17  40  485631 YAKOVISHINA Elena  1992  RUS   55.52  50.67  1:46.19  36.28
 18  45  565403 LIVK Klara  1994  SLO   54.80  51.80  1:46.60  38.75
 19  74  405138 JELINKOVA Adriana  1995  NED   55.76  51.24  1:47.00  41.16
 20  37  516185 HAEHLEN Joana  1992  SUI   55.47  51.55  1:47.02  41.28
 21  61  485802 TKACHENKO Ekaterina  1995  RUS   55.95  52.06  1:48.01  47.25
 22  30  107269 CARROLL Tianda  1993  CAN   56.37  53.99  1:50.36  61.42
 23  71  298767 SOSIO Federica  1994  ITA   56.73  54.83  1:51.56  68.65
 24  52  56125 PUCHNER Mirjam  1992  AUT   56.69  55.33  1:52.02  71.43
 25  67  539678 PETERSON Foreste  1993  USA   57.13  55.39  1:52.52  74.44
 26  60  185357 VIRKKULA Sohvi  1993  FIN   57.18  55.48  1:52.66  75.28
 27  69  45331 SMALL Greta  1995  AUS   58.06  56.19  1:54.25  84.87
 28  88  435371 WASEK Katarzyna  1996  POL   59.48  57.17  1:56.65  99.34
 29  49  107227 TESCHNER Randa  1992  CAN   59.62  57.08  1:56.70  99.64
 30  84  298642 GIARDINI Ida  1993  ITA   59.42  59.73  1:59.15  114.41
 31  90  685018 TSIKLAURI Nino  1993  GEO   1:00.81  59.06  1:59.87  118.75
 32  93  255315 HELGADOTTIR Erla-Gudny  1993  ISL   1:01.80  59.33  2:01.13  126.34
 33  91  695101 TIKUN Tetyana  1994  UKR   1:03.24  1:00.60  2:03.84  142.68
 34  97  695110 BELOBORODOVA Rada-oleksandra  1996  UKR   1:05.11  1:01.88  2:06.99  161.67
 35  103  695108 KNYSH Olha  1995  UKR   1:05.41  1:01.83  2:07.24  163.18
 36  102  85024 MARANO Chiara  1993  BRA   1:06.22  1:04.71  2:10.93  185.42
 37  107  215020 BARANOVA Svetlana  1993  UZB   1:14.73  1:11.19  2:25.92  275.78
 38  104  685020 GAVVA Susana  1995  GEO   1:13.47  1:15.57  2:29.04  294.59
 39  106  605004 GASPAR Veronica  1995  ISV   1:11.49  1:18.62  2:30.11  301.04
 40  109  345087 HADDAD Mounia  1994  LIB   1:18.13  1:13.66  2:31.79  311.17
 41  111  345095 NASSAR Lea  1995  LIB   1:21.94  1:19.68  2:41.62  370.43
 42  110  345097 CHAKER Yara  1995  LIB   1:28.30  1:18.20  2:46.50  399.85
Disqualified 2nd run
   100  245062 HELLNER Donata  1993  HUN         
   96  235241 VLACHOU Anna Afroditi  1994  GRE         
   82  107181 MARCIL Stephanie  1992  CAN         
   75  298694 PICHLER Karoline  1994  ITA         
   70  155698 RUDOLFOVA Veronika  1993  CZE         
   51  298583 MEDETTI Alessia  1993  ITA         
   47  107217 KNOWLES Natalie  1992  CAN         
   44  197215 MASSIOS Marie  1992  FRA         
   36  516289 THUERLER Andrea  1993  SUI         
   25  155728 DUBOVSKA Martina  1992  CZE         
   15  56126 ZELLER Lisa-Maria  1992  AUT         
Did not start 1st run
   80  539457 MARNO Anna  1992  USA         
Did not finish 2nd run
   101  345107 MOHBAT Natacha  1996  LIB         
   99  115143 VYHMEISTER Stefanie  1993  CHI         
   95  275024 BELL Victoria  1994  IRE         
   87  35177 SIMARI BIRKNER Angelica  1994  ARG         
   83  255367 VILHJALMSDOTTIR Helga Maria  1995  ISL         
   79  355056 FRICK Joana  1993  LIE         
   62  426092 CHRISTENSEN Nora Grieg  1995  NOR         
   59  56177 VENIER Stephanie  1993  AUT         
   58  298748 BENEDETTI Giulia  1994  ITA         
   55  355058 BUEHLER Anna-Laura  1994  LIE         
   50  307493 ANDO Asa  1996  JPN         
   43  565393 KOSI Mihaela  1993  SLO         
   39  496218 METRAILLER Karen  1992  SPA         
   34  155695 VOLOPICHOVA Valentina  1993  CZE         
   33  306977 MUKOGAWA Sakurako  1992  JPN         
   31  485637 ALOPINA Ksenia  1992  RUS         
   22  155697 ZEMANOVA Andrea  1993  CZE         
   9  56241 SCHNEEBERGER Rosina  1994  AUT         
   7  6535237 SHIFFRIN Mikaela  1995  USA         
   1  506350 EKLUND Nathalie  1992  SWE         
Did not finish 1st run
   108  455005 SELVA Federica  1996  RSM         
   105  245068 URY Zsuzsanna  1995  HUN         
   98  235195 KOKKINI Anastasia  1992  GRE         
   94  695105 GORBUNOVA Anastasiia  1995  UKR         
   92  255357 EINARSDOTTIR Freydis-Halla  1994  ISL         
   89  435319 BEDKOWSKA Alicja  1993  POL         
   86  565406 ZNIDAR Nina  1994  SLO         
   85  496052 GALOFRE Anna  1994  SPA         
   81  225518 GUEST Charlotte  1993  GBR         
   78  435334 GASIENICA DANIEL Maryna  1994  POL         
   77  435313 MAJERCZYK Sabina  1993  POL         
   76  539536 WILES Jacqueline  1992  USA         
   73  225525 TILLEY Alexandra  1993  GBR         
   72  516248 FLURY Jasmine  1993  SUI         
   68  539404 SAMUELS Lauren  1992  USA         
   66  155741 KOTRLOVA Katerina  1994  CZE         
   65  298124 AGNELLI Nicole  1992  ITA         
   64  565400 HORVAT Katja  1993  SLO         
   63  516394 SUTER Jasmina  1995  SUI         
   57  255314 GUDMUNDSDOTTIR Maria  1993  ISL         
   56  485749 PROKOPYEVA Aleksandra  1994  RUS         
   54  185364 JUUTINEN Jutta  1993  FIN         
   53  539363 GHENT Abby  1992  USA         
   46  206532 SCHMOTZ Marlene  1994  GER         
   42  485731 ROMANOVA Anastasia  1993  RUS         
   41  206487 WIESLER Maren  1993  GER         
   38  425921 HAUGEN Kristine Gjelsten  1992  NOR         
   32  197497 MIRADOLI Romane  1994  FRA         
   26  705394 KANTOROVA Barbara  1992  SVK         
   20  56174 HAASER Ricarda  1993  AUT         
   18  307120 ARAI Makiko  1993  JPN         
   14  565398 HAFNER Ula  1993  SLO         
   13  197616 ALPHAND Estelle  1995  FRA         
   12  506583 SAEFVENBERG Charlotta  1994  SWE         
   11  565401 BUCIK Ana  1993  SLO         
   10  197375 DIAZ Lucie  1993  FRA         
   6  206444 HOESL Simona  1992  GER