Fenninger seizes GS globe in Lenzerheide

By Published On: March 16th, 2014Comments Off on Fenninger seizes GS globe in Lenzerheide
Fenninger wins a second discipline title in the GS Sunday. (GEPA)

Fenninger wins GS discipline title after final race victory Sunday. GEPA/Christian Walgram

With a win in the final race, Austria’s Anna Fenninger underscored her impressive season and picked up a discipline crystal globe at the World Cup Finals in Lenzerheide, Switzerland Sunday.

It was a tight race for the giant slalom title, 432-418 coming into the final day in favor of Sweden’s Jessica Lindell-Vikarby, who led the standings for most of the season. But with two GS races last weekend in Are, where Fenninger won back-to-back days, the Austrian proved too much for the Swede to fend off.

Fenninger won the latter four GS races of the World Cup season, dating back to December. She ultimately wins the discipline 518-592, while another Swede, Maria Pietilae-Holmner, finished in third with 339 points.

For Fenninger, the day also awarded the overall crystal globe, which she had locked up earlier in the week after her primary competitor in that race, Maria Hoefl-Riesch, crashed into the nets in the downhill, ending her season four days prematurely while still securing the discipline title. Fenninger finished as runner-up for the season in downhill.

Foggy conditions characterized most of the second run up top; however, toward the end of the running, there were periods where it cleared off. Austria’s Eva-Maria Brem, who finished third and fourth in Are last week, was able to capitalize of good visibility to finish runner-up, 0.25 seconds back in Sunday’s action. Lindell-Vikarby, meanwhile, didn’t go out without a fight — she finished in third, just 0.33 seconds behind the winner. France’s Anemone Marmottan led after the first run, but struggled in her second outing, dropping back to seventh.

Saturday’s slalom champ Mikaela Shiffrin, on a mission to complete one of her other season’s goals — to win a GS — was very much in striking distance in fourth after the first run. Times were tight after the second run, the first dozen racers all within a second, so a few mistakes out of the gate quickly led to a relatively distant 12th-place result for the lone American Shiffrin.

“I was trying hard, maybe a little too hard, but it was still a fun race,” said Shiffrin. “It was definitely softer snow the second run than the first run, but it still held up really well — a little bumpy here and there. I just have to learn to stay on my outside ski. … I’m going to just keep attacking the GS and see what I can come up with next year. I improved a lot since last season, so I’m excited to keep going.

“I think every part of (this year) was pretty awesome and special,” Shiffrin concluded. “The whole year again was a learning experience, so I’m really excited to wrap it up healthy and strong and feeling excited for next year.”

See more photos from this race in our gallery here.

THE SCOOP

By Hank McKee

Women’s World Cup giant slalom, Lenzerheide, Switzerland, March 16, 2014

Equipment – skis/boots/bindings

1 Fenninger, Head/Head/Head

2 Brem, Voelkl/Fischer/Marker

3 Lindell-Vikarby, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol

4 Fanchini, Dynastar/Lange/Look

5 Gut, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol

6 Pietilae-Holmner, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol

7 Marmottannn, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol

8 Gisin, Dynastar/Lange/

9 Brignone, Rossignol/Lange/Rossignol

10 Rebensburg, Nordica/Nordica/Marker

Women’s World Cup giant slalom, Lenzerheide, Switzerland, March 16, 2014. … It is the final race of the 2014 World Cup season. … It is the 32nd and final race of the women’s World Cup schedule… the final of eight scheduled GS’s. … It is the 42nd World Cup race hosted by Lenzerheide… the eighth GS.

It is the eighth career World Cup win for Anna Fenninger…. her seventh in GS. … It is her fifth win of the season including the Olympic gold medal in super G. … She won the last four consecutive World Cup giant slaloms.

It is the second career World Cup podium for Eva-Maria Brem, the first being a third at Are earlier this month. … Her top four results have all been scored in March… three of them this season.

It is the eighth career World Cup podium for Jessica Lindell-Vikarby… her fifth in GS (the others in super G). … It is her second straight third-place finish.

The top 12 finishers are all within the same second.

Mikaela Shiffrin misses her career-best GS result at Lenzerheide by one placing. … It is the third Lenzerheide result for Marie-Michele Gagnon, but her first in GS. … It is her 18th scoring finish of the season.

Anna Fenninger is the World Cup overall champion 1371-1180 over Maria Hoefl-Riesch (did not race, injury). … Lara Gut (fifth in race) is third overall with 1101pts. … Mikaela Shiffrin is sixth with 895pts. … Marie-Michele Gagnon 13th with 51pts.

Fenninger wins the GS title 518-491 over Jessica Lindell-Vikarby. … Maria Pietilae-Holmner is third with 3339pts. …Shiffrin is seventh with 257pts and Gagnon 19th with 121pts.

Austria wins the women’s Nations Cup 6096-3356 over Switzerland. … Sweden is third with 2938pts. … The U.S. women finish sixth with 2021pts and Canada 11th with 810pts.

 

RESULTS

Rank Bib FIS Code Name Year Nation Run 1 Run 2 Total Time Diff. FIS Points
 1  7  55947 FENNINGER Anna 1989 AUT  59.37  1:01.91  2:01.28  0.00
 2  11  55898 BREM Eva-Maria 1988 AUT  1:00.06  1:01.47  2:01.53  +0.25  1.83
 3  1  505632 LINDELL-VIKARBY Jessica 1984 SWE  59.51  1:02.10  2:01.61  +0.33  2.42
 4  12  296729 FANCHINI Nadia 1986 ITA  1:00.36  1:01.50  2:01.86  +0.58  4.26
 5  3  516138 GUT Lara 1991 SUI  59.99  1:01.90  2:01.89  +0.61  4.48
 6  5  505760 PIETILAE-HOLMNER Maria 1986 SWE  1:00.20  1:01.70  2:01.90  +0.62  4.55
 7  4  196793 MARMOTTAN Anemone 1988 FRA  59.33  1:02.58  2:01.91  +0.63  4.62
 8  9  515747 GISIN Dominique 1985 SUI  1:00.19  1:01.75  2:01.94  +0.66  4.84
 9  10  297601 BRIGNONE Federica 1990 ITA  1:00.42  1:01.59  2:02.01  +0.73  5.36
 10  8  205218 REBENSBURG Viktoria 1989 GER  1:00.26  1:01.78  2:02.04  +0.76  5.58
 11  6  55838 ZETTEL Kathrin 1986 AUT  1:00.01  1:02.11  2:02.12  +0.84  6.16
 12  2  6535237 SHIFFRIN Mikaela 1995 USA  59.98  1:02.25  2:02.23  +0.95  6.97
 13  18  505679 HANSDOTTER Frida 1985 SWE  1:01.51  1:00.82  2:02.33  +1.05  7.71
 14  14  296259 MOELGG Manuela 1983 ITA  1:01.13  1:01.36  2:02.49  +1.21  8.88
 15  16  105269 GAGNON Marie-Michele 1989 CAN  1:01.41  1:01.19  2:02.60  +1.32  9.69
 16  13  565243 MAZE Tina 1983 SLO  1:00.85  1:01.76  2:02.61  +1.33  9.76
 17  17  55576 GOERGL Elisabeth 1981 AUT  1:01.58  1:01.50  2:03.08  +1.80  13.21
 18  19  505886 KLING Kajsa 1988 SWE  1:02.23  1:02.37  2:04.60  +3.32  24.36
 19  25  299276 BASSINO Marta 1996 ITA  1:03.67  1:01.30  2:04.97  +3.69  27.08
 20  22  185140 POUTIAINEN Tanja 1980 FIN  1:02.64  1:02.47  2:05.11  +3.83  28.11
 21  23  196179 BERTRAND Marion 1984 FRA  1:04.82  1:00.94  2:05.76  +4.48  32.88
Did not start 2nd run
 20  295445 KARBON Denise 1980 ITA
Did not finish 1st run
 24  106825 PREFONTAINE Marie-Pier 1988 CAN
 21  297702 MARSAGLIA Francesca 1990 ITA
 15  425771 LOESETH Nina 1989 NOR

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About the Author: Geoff Mintz

Geoff Mintz is a former alpine ski racer who cut his teeth at Ragged Mountain and Waterville Valley, N.H. After graduating from Holderness and UVM, he relocated to Colorado, where he worked on the hill prior to pursuing a career in journalism. Mintz served as associate editor for Ski Racing Media from 2011 to 2015. He later reconnected with his local roots to manage all marketing and communications for Ski & Snowboard Club Vail before resuming work at SRM as editor-in-chief.