Monster weekend in Lienz; Men brace for Bormio

Lienz has hosted World Cup races for a long time, but it has hosted wild and fast events for much longer. This season’s poster shows a ski racer being followed — for a lack of a better word — by monsters. Krampusnacht is part of a Tyrolian custom where men of the villages dress in masks and sheepskins and conduct fights …   
    The World Cup first visited Lienz in 1969 when Judy Nagel won a GS and slalom — (Barbara Cochran was third, Marilyn Cochran sixth and Julie Wolcott seventh in that GS) while Frenchmen Patrick Russell and Jean-Noel Augert won the men’s events.
    … The men will be competing at Bormio in the northern reaches of Italy. The town that  hosted the 1985 and 2005 World Championships also has hosted 41 World Cup events, and of those all but four have occurred since 1995. It is a modern addition to the traditional calendar.
LIENZ HAS HOSTED World Cup races for a long time, but it has hosted wild and fast events for much longer. This season’s poster shows a ski racer being followed — for a lack of a better word — by monsters. Krampusnacht is part of a Tyrolian custom where men of the villages dress in masks and sheepskins and conduct fights. The age-old ritual has to do with the accompaniment of Saint Nicholas and it is rarely viewed by anyone but locals. It can be a frightening experience for those familiar with the custom, and downright terrifying for those who don’t.
    Lienz also hosts the Festival der Geschwindigkeit, or Festival of Speed, a project started in 1949 when the town invited Grand Prix drivers to come and race through the streets. That still goes on and stretches now for three weeks. The marathon cross-country race the Dolomitenlauf is held in the eastern Tyrolian area as well. Fast sports and holiday traditions allow ski racing to fit right in.
    The World Cup first visited Lienz in 1969 when Judy Nagel won a GS and slalom — (Barbara Cochran was third, Marilyn Cochran sixth and Julie Wolcott seventh in that GS) while Frenchmen Patrick Russell and Jean-Noel Augert won the men’s events. But Lienz has not been a regular on the circuit. Over the years there have been just 15 races, 12 of them women’s races and the bulk of those since 1999 when the town began hosting in odd-number years. Anja Paerson has had the most success at the site, with slalom wins in December of 2001 and 2003 and she got the last GS win in 2005. Marlies Schild won the last slalom Dec. 29, 2005.
    The GS course ends at the main road near to the center of town, and snowmaking has been added, assuring good cover. The course was altered slightly, widened a bit at the top, but it will remain a tough and challenging test.
    There have only been two women’s GS races prior to Lienz, and one of those was back in October so it’s hard to figure momentum will play a role. Still, Italian Denise Karbon has won both of those earlier GS’s, and no other woman has made the top five in both, so she has to be considered among the favorites. There have been three slaloms with Marlies Schild winning two, but she has not finished her last two runs (at Aspen and in the combined at St Moritz). Nicole Hosp has a win and a second to date. Resi Stiegler has been in the top 10 of all three slaloms this season, and she has an added incentive: Lienz is her father Pepi’s hometown.
    The men will be competing at Bormio in the northern reaches of Italy. The town that  hosted the 1985 and 2005 World Championships also has hosted 41 World Cup events, and of those all but four have occurred since 1995. It is a modern addition to the traditional calendar.
    Since 2000 there have been nine men’s downhills, all of them won either by Austrians or by Daron Rahlves. Michael Walchhofer won twice on the track in back-to-back contests last season, edging Didier Cuche by a hundredth in the first and Peter Fill by two tenths in the second. In the 2005 World Championships, Bode Miller won the gold medal in both the downhill and a super G. He’s been fast and unlucky so far this season, but Bormio obviously has been good to him in the past.
    Looks like an exciting way to close out the first third of the 2007-08 World Cup season.