Adelboden: Berthod claims win in difficult conditions
Adelboden lived up to the billing as the World Cup's toughest GS hill Saturday, Dec. 5, when 35 percent of the starting field failed to finish the first run. Marc Berthod claimed his second career win at the traditional stop when he closed from fourth after the first run. His only previous win had also come at Adelboden, but in slalom last season.
Berthod led a 1-2 Swiss sweep of the race, the best finish for the homestanding Swiss at Adelboden since 1996 as Daniel Albrecht claimed second.
Adelboden lived up to the billing as the World Cup's toughest GS hill Saturday, Dec. 5, when 35 percent of the starting field failed to finish the first run. Marc Berthod claimed his second career win at the traditional stop when he closed from fourth after the first run. His only previous win had also come at Adelboden, but in slalom last season.
Berthod led a 1-2 Swiss sweep of the race, the best finish for the homestanding Swiss at Adelboden since 1996 as Daniel Albrecht claimed second. Austria took the next two placings with Hannes Reichelt third and Christoph Gruber fourth.
It was not a good day for the U.S. squad as GS standings leader Ted Ligety fell near the start, and Bode Miller missed a gate in the first leg. Ligety fell spectacularly onto his back between the sixth and eighth gates and slid into the restraining fence, but was able to walk off the course.
''My head is a little bit raw, but otherwise I'm OK,'' said Ligety, who had an abrasion on his right cheek and put the fall down to a soft layer of snow that had built up due to warm conditions.
Jimmy Cochran was the only American out of four to make it down the course finishing 17th for the day.
''I made it down, that's about it,'' Cochran said. ''It's all about survival here. I'm kind of lucky I made it.''
Canadian Jean-Philippe Roy posted ninth as the only other North American finisher.
The win was a bit surprising as Berthod's only other GS podium had been a third scored at Alta Badia, Italy, last month.
The Swiss nearly pulled off a podium sweep. Didier Cuche had been second after the first run but visibly slowed his run at the end and finished 12th to the disappointment of 23,000 home fans.
Difficult conditions during the first run caused dozens of racers to lose their footing — some more spectacularly than others. Ligety managed to walk off virtually unscathed despite performing a backward flip early on in the first leg.
''That first pitch is what got me there, it's what got Bode, it's what got a lot of them,'' he said. Bode Miller tried to continue after missing a gate in the first run but gave up when he went out a second time moments later.
The lead racer during the first leg, Austria's Stephan Goergl, tried to hold back in the second run and finished 19th.
Only Frenchmen Joel Chenal and Thomas Frey beat Berthod's second run, but it wasn't enough for overall victory and they ended 10th and 15th, respectively.
— The Associated Press contributed to this story.
The SCOOP
By Hank McKee
Men's Giant Slalom, Adelboden, Switzerland, Jan. 5, 2008
Skier, skis/boots/bindings
1 Berthod, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic
2 Albrecht, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic
3 Reichelt, Fischer/Fischer/Fischer
4 Gruber, Fischer/Fischer/Fischer
5 Moelgg, Fischer/Fischer/Fischer
6 Palander, Fischer/Fischer/Fischer
7 Raich, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic
8 Schoenfelder, Fischer/Fischer/Fischer
9 Roy, Salomon/Salomon/Salomon
10 Chenal, Fischer/Lange/Look
Men's Giant Slalom, Adelboden, Switzerland, Jan. 5, 2008. … It is the 16th race of the men's 41 event 2008 World Cup schedule. … It is the fifth of eight scheduled giant slaloms. … It is the 43rd World Cup race held at the site. … The 37th GS.
It is the second career World Cup win for Marc Berthod his only previous win also coming at Adelboden, but in slalom, Jan. 7, 2007. … His previous best GS result had come earlier this season at Alta Badia where he placed third. … He is just the seventh Swiss skier to win the Adelboden GS since it became a World Cup event in 1967. … The last was Didier Cuche in 2002.
It is the fourth World Cup podium for Daniel Albrecht. … The third this season having won the GS and combined at Beaver Creek. … He also placed second in downhill at Lenzerheide to close out last season. … It was the first one-two finish for Switzerland since Sonja Nef and Corrine Rey Ballet in a GS at Semmering Dec. 30, 2000. … Last for Swiss men since Michael VonGruenigen and Steve Locher in GS at Sierra Nevada March 14, 1999.
It is the sixth World Cup podium for Hannes Reichelt, the first not in super G. … His previous best in GS had been fifth at Are March 17, 2006.
Jean-Philippe Roy matched his second best career World Cup score. … His only better placing a fifth in GS at Alta Badia Dec. 19, 2004. … He had previously finished ninth at Kranjska Gora and Adelboden in slalom. … It is his best placing in three seasons. … It is the 15th career World Cup scoring result for Jimmy Cochran. … His fourth of the season.
Winning margin is .56 of a second. … Top six are within a second. … Top 22 within two seconds. … Benjamin Raich (7th in race) maintains the lead of the World Cup overall standings 560-525 for Didier Cuche (12th in race). … Daniel Albrecht moves into third place with 446pts. … Bode Miller (DNF 1st run) is fourth at 406. … Albrecht takes control of the GS standings 258-248 over Raich. … Kalle Palander (6th in race) moves to third at 240. …Ted Ligety (DNF 1st run) the GS standings leader entering the race drops to fourth at 235.
| Rank | Bib | FIS Code | Name | Year | Nation | Run 1 | Run 2 | Total Time | FIS Points |
| 1 | 15 | 510997 | BERTHOD Marc | 1983 | SUI | 1:14.05 | 1:13.51 | 2:27.56 | 0.00 |
| 2 | 4 | 510993 | ALBRECHT Daniel | 1983 | SUI | 1:13.96 | 1:14.16 | 2:28.12 | 3.34 |
| 3 | 20 | 50742 | REICHELT Hannes | 1980 | AUT | 1:14.53 | 1:13.61 | 2:28.14 | 3.46 |
| 4 | 16 | 50451 | GRUBER Christoph | 1976 | AUT | 1:14.68 | 1:13.57 | 2:28.25 | 4.11 |
| 5 | 6 | 292491 | MOELGG Manfred | 1982 | ITA | 1:14.35 | 1:13.91 | 2:28.26 | 4.17 |
| 6 | 1 | 180251 | PALANDER Kalle | 1977 | FIN | 1:14.55 | 1:13.81 | 2:28.36 | 4.77 |
| 7 | 5 | 50625 | RAICH Benjamin | 1978 | AUT | 1:14.28 | 1:14.31 | 2:28.59 | 6.14 |
| 8 | 26 | 50547 | SCHOENFELDER Rainer | 1977 | AUT | 1:15.01 | 1:13.63 | 2:28.64 | 6.44 |
| 9 | 28 | 101895 | ROY Jean-Philippe | 1979 | CAN | 1:14.64 | 1:14.17 | 2:28.81 | 7.45 |
| 10 | 21 | 190677 | CHENAL Joel | 1973 | FRA | 1:15.56 | 1:13.29 | 2:28.85 | 7.69 |
| 11 | 45 | 192504 | MERMILLOD BLONDIN Thomas | 1984 | FRA | 1:15.40 | 1:13.63 | 2:29.03 | 8.77 |
| 12 | 7 | 510030 | CUCHE Didier | 1974 | SUI | 1:13.93 | 1:15.20 | 2:29.13 | 9.36 |
| 13 | 50 | 290693 | PLONER Alexander | 1978 | ITA | 1:15.43 | 1:13.77 | 2:29.20 | 9.78 |
| 13 | 8 | 510727 | DEFAGO Didier | 1977 | SUI | 1:14.29 | 1:14.91 | 2:29.20 | 9.78 |
| 15 | 40 | 192653 | FREY Thomas | 1984 | FRA | 1:15.77 | 1:13.47 | 2:29.24 | 10.02 |
| 16 | 13 | 292250 | SCHIEPPATI Alberto | 1981 | ITA | 1:15.35 | 1:13.95 | 2:29.30 | 10.38 |
| 17 | 30 | 534040 | COCHRAN Jimmy | 1981 | USA | 1:14.93 | 1:14.38 | 2:29.31 | 10.44 |
| 18 | 3 | 292000 | BLARDONE Massimiliano | 1979 | ITA | 1:14.77 | 1:14.55 | 2:29.32 | 10.50 |
| 19 | 19 | 50600 | GOERGL Stephan | 1978 | AUT | 1:13.50 | 1:15.83 | 2:29.33 | 10.56 |
| 20 | 39 | 51215 | BAUMANN Romed | 1986 | AUT | 1:15.10 | 1:14.36 | 2:29.46 | 11.33 |
| 21 | 24 | 50743 | LANZINGER Matthias | 1980 | AUT | 1:15.72 | 1:13.81 | 2:29.53 | 11.75 |
| 22 | 27 | 191423 | RICHARD Cyprien | 1979 | FRA | 1:14.38 | 1:15.16 | 2:29.54 | 11.81 |
| 23 | 29 | 501017 | MYHRER Andre | 1983 | SWE | 1:15.53 | 1:14.06 | 2:29.59 | 12.11 |
| 24 | 37 | 191746 | DE TESSIERES Gauthier | 1981 | FRA | 1:14.68 | 1:14.93 | 2:29.61 | 12.23 |
| 25 | 44 | 190236 | COVILI Frederic | 1975 | FRA | 1:15.31 | 1:14.58 | 2:29.89 | 13.90 |
| 26 | 49 | 421483 | JANSRUD Kjetil | 1985 | NOR | 1:15.69 | 1:14.47 | 2:30.16 | 15.51 |
| 27 | 18 | 292455 | FILL Peter | 1982 | ITA | 1:15.83 | 1:14.39 | 2:30.22 | 15.86 |
| 28 | 31 | 350032 | BUECHEL Marco | 1971 | LIE | 1:15.34 | 1:15.05 | 2:30.39 | 16.88 |
Did not start 1st run : GORZA Ales (SLO)
Did not finish 1st run : ROUX Christophe (MDA), NORDH Fredrik (SWE), DOPFER Fritz (GER), GINI Marc (SUI), OLSSON Matts (SWE), VILETTA Sandro (SUI), NEUREUTHER Felix (GER), RAJALA Jukka (FIN), PICHOT Sebastien (FRA), RAINER Niklas (SWE), SPENCER Dane (USA), EISATH Florian (ITA), SCHOERGHOFER Philipp (AUT), LEINO Jukka (FIN), GRANGE Jean-Baptiste (FRA), GUAY Erik (CAN), LARSSON Markus (SWE), MILLER Bode (USA), KUCERA John (CAN), SIMONCELLI Davide (ITA), BOURQUE Francois (CAN), MATT Mario (AUT), LIGETY Ted (USA)
Did not finish 2nd run : SANDELL Marcus (FIN)
Disqualified 2nd run : MISSILLIER Steve (FRA)
Did not qualify 1st run : KOSTELIC Ivica (CRO), THEAUX Adrien (FRA), GRUENENFELDER Tobias (SUI), PITTSCHIELER Kurt (ITA), SIMARI BIRKNER Cristian Javier (ARG), VALENCIC Mitja (SLO), INNERHOFER Christof (ITA), VAJDIC Bernard (SLO), BANK Ondrej (CZE), BECHTER Patrick (AUT), KARLSEN Truls Ove (NOR)
About the Author: Pete Rugh
