Tarvisio: Mancuso wins DH; Goetschl takes crystal
Julia Mancuso won a World Cup downhill Saturday and Renate Goetschl finished second to take the season’s discipline title.
Mancuso skied the 2.991-kilometer (1.9-mile) Prampero course in 1 minute, 52.67 seconds for her fourth win of the season. Goetschl was second, 0.17 seconds behind, and Emily Brydon of Canada was third, 0.21 back.
Mancuso won the giant slalom at last year’s Torino Olympics but had never won a World Cup race entering this season.
“I’m psyched. I just started winning races this year, so it’s awesome,” Mancuso said. “I always have good races in Italy."
TARVISIO, Italy — Julia Mancuso won a World Cup downhill Saturday and Renate Goetschl finished second to take the season’s discipline title.
Mancuso skied the 2.991-kilometer (1.9-mile) Prampero course in 1 minute, 52.67 seconds for her fourth win of the season. Goetschl was second, 0.17 seconds behind, and Emily Brydon of Canada was third, 0.21 back.
Mancuso won the giant slalom at last year’s Torino Olympics but had never won a World Cup race entering this season.
“I’m psyched. I just started winning races this year, so it’s awesome,” Mancuso said. “I always have good races in Italy.”
Marlies Schild finished seventh and retained her lead in the overall World Cup standings with 1,148 points, while Mancuso moved up to second on 1,139. Nicole Hosp dropped to third with 1,103 after finishing 17th and Goetschl was fourth on 1,099.
American Kirsten Clark was a season-best eighth, with Stacey Cook 15th, Libby Ludlow 31st and Resi Stiegler 32nd.
Goetschl injured both of her knees in a training crash Thursday and skipped Friday’s super combi.
“She felt pain, but she knew she needed a result right behind Mancuso to win the cup,” Austrian Alpine Director Hans Pum said. “You could see it in her eyes how focused she was."
“I was going to ski today no matter what,” Goetschl said. “I wanted to win the cup.”
Goetschl clinched the downhill title with one race to spare. She has 605 points, while Mancuso is second with 491. Wins are worth 100 points each so Goetschl has an insurmountable lead.
It’s the fifth downhill title of Goetschl’s career, matching fellow Austrian Franz Klammer for the record.
“Franz Klammer is a legend and I also know him,” Goetschl said. “Whenever you hear the name Franz Klammer you think downhill, and I’ve always thought downhill also.”
“She’s the speed queen,” Pum said. “I think she’s the greatest now.”
Goetschl has also wrapped up this season's super G title, while Schild has clinched the slalom and super combi cups. The only discipline title still up for grabs is giant slalom, with Hosp leading the standings.
While the Austrians could sweep the small crystal globes, Mancuso has her eyes set on the large crystal overall trophy.
“It takes a lot of races. I’m trying to concentrate on one race at a time,” said Mancuso, who also won the silver medal in combined at last month’s World Championships.
Mancuso now has the most single-season wins by a U.S. woman since Picabo Street won six races (all DHs) in the 1995 season.
As journalists asked about closing in on the overall points lead, Mancuso — who took off for five days to rest before this final attack — said, as she’s said before, “I’m really trying not to think of it. You guys make me think of it.
“For me, it’s more important that I focus on tomorrow’s race, not the overall … and if I keep doing well, the points will keep growing. But I try not to think of it.”
The Olympic giant slalom champion has likened accumulating World Cup points to accumulating frequent flyer miles: “The more you do [fly], the more you get … but I don’t think about them.”
Mancuso, who was second Friday in a super combined, said the bottom of the course may have made her run look more dramatic than it was. “It was bumpy and there was flat light, but — for me — it can’t be fast enough now. I love the speed; it’s so much fun to go fast down these hills,” Mancuso said.
Clark’s time was 1:53.25 and Cook finished in 1:53.90 as they confirmed downhill rankings inside the top 25, the cutoff for World Cup Finals March 14-18 in Lenzerheide, Switzerland.
Clark was pleased with her top 10. “I’ve been fast in the training runs and knew I could do it. I was feeling confident and I was charging. It was tough because of the spring conditions, which made it hard — you’ve gotta be over your skis. It’s nice I’ll be going to Lenzerheide; that’s a special place for me,” she said, an obvious reference to her World Cup DH victory there in 2001.
Riml pumped
“It was an unbelievable show today from Julia … just incredible what she did. She didn’t have the best light — it was flat light for just about everyone, but she really wanted it,” head coach Patrick Riml said.
“She was a little behind but she kept going faster and skied so well on the bottom. It was 100 percent commitment,” Riml said. “She just stuck her nose in there and charged …
“And ‘Clarky’ and Stacey did well, too. They’ll be going to World Cup Finals in two weeks, which is good. They’ve worked hard this season and this is a nice payback for them.”
The women have a super G Sunday and then go to Zwiesel, Germany, for a giant slalom and slalom before World Cup Finals begin March 14 in Lenzerheide.
Wolf crashes hard
Tamara Wolf, the second skier on course, had an ugly crash and was airlifted to a local hospital.
After a 25-minute delay, the next skier on course — Chemmy Alcott of Britain — also fell. Alcott, Mancuso’s best friend on the circuit, lost control after crossing the finish line but appeared uninjured.
Daniela Merighetti of Italy, who led Thursday’s training session, also crashed, bruising her elbow.
World champion Anja Paerson skied off course midway through her run.
Mancuso watched Wolf’s crash on TV and decided to do some freeskiing before her run to clear her mind.
“It was so bad, but it always looks worse on TV,” Mancuso said. “You can’t think about it. It’s skiing, and life. Unlucky things happen.”
THE SCOOP
By Hank McKee
Equipment
Women's downhill, Tarvisio, Italy, March 3, 2007
Skier, skis/boots/bindings
1 Mancuso, Rossignol/Lange/Rossignol
2 Goetschl, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic
3 Brydon, Salomon/Salomon/Salomon
4 Goergl, Blizzard/La
nge/Marker
5 Vanderbeek, Volkl/Lange/Marker
6 Styger, Volkl/Lange/Marker
7 Schild, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic
8 Clark, Fischer/Lange/Fischer
9 Alcott, Fischer//Tyrolia 10 Janyk, Volkl/Lange/Marker
10 Janyk, Volkl/Lange/Marker
Women's downhill, Tarvisio, Italy, March 3, 2007. … It is the 28th race of the women's 37-race World Cup schedule. … It is the eighth of nine scheduled downhills. … It is the second of three races set at Tarvisio in the resort's inaugural World Cup appearance. … The race was delayed when the second racer (Tamara Wolf of Switzerland) crashed and required airlifting.
It is the fourth career win for Julia Mancuso and her fourth of the season. … It is her second DH win after Val d'Isere Dec. 19. … It is the 173rd U.S. World Cup win. … Mancuso sits alone in 12th place on the all-time U.S. win list, having passed Barb Cochran, Bill Johnson, Hilary Lindh, Julie Parisien, Marilyn Cochran, Holly Flanders and Judy Nagel. … It is the 47th U.S. DH win. … Of Mancuso's 12 World Cup podium placings, seven have come in Italy. … It is the 12th U.S. win of the season.
It is the 101st World Cup podium for Renate Goetschl, her 11th of the season. … It is her 54th career podium in DH. … Her sixth in DH this season in eight chances. … She wins the DH title with the placing, her fifth in the discipline, having also been champion in 1997, '99, 2004 and '05. … It is her second World Cup title of the season, having previous been assured her third SG crown.
It is the fourth career World Cup podium for Emily Brydon. … All of them third-place finishes. … It is her second in DH, the first coming at St. Moritz Dec. 16, 2000. … It is her best finish of the season, eclipsing an eighth in SG at Lake Louise Dec. 3. … It is the 10th Cup podium result of the season for Canada.
Kelley VanderBeek matches her third best career placing in fifth. … It is her career-best placing in DH, the other better marks coming in SG. … It is her third top five of the season, having also been fifth at San Sicario and third at Lake Louise (SGs). … The Canadian men had two in the top five a week ago at Garmisch in DH (Erik Guay 1, Jan Hudec 5). … It is the 28th career top eight for Kirsten Clark. … It is her top result of the season, eclipsing a 13th from Val d'Isere Dec. 20. … It is the 19th time this season the U.S. team has placed at least two in the top 10 of a World Cup race. … It is the eighth career top 10 for Britt Janyk. … The fourth of the season. … The Canadian men also had three skiers in the top 10 at Garmisch (DH) Feb. 24.
Stacey Cook matches her fourth-best career result and second-best of the season. … The better placing was fourth, Lake Louise DH Dec. 1. … She was also 15th at Zauchensee DH Jan. 13. … It is the sixth career scoring result from Shona Rubens. … Fourth this season. … It is her second 23rd-place finish in two days. … Libby Ludlow and Resi Stiegler finish 31st and 32nd respectively, just missing scores.
Goetschl ices the DH title, holding a 605-491 edge over Mancuso with one race remaining. … Lindsey Kildow (did not race) is third on the list at 390. … Marlies Schild (seventh in race) maintains the lead in the overall standings 1148-1139 over Mancuso. … Nicole Hosp (17th in race) is third at 1103 and Goetschl fourth at 1099. … Seven races remain on the women's schedule. … Winning margin is .17 of a second. … Top 10 finishers are within a second. … Top 22 within two seconds.
Tarvisio women's World Cup downhill results
Rank | Bib | FIS Code | Name | Year | Nation | Total Time | FIS Points |
1 | 29 | 537545 | MANCUSO Julia | 1984 | USA | 1:52.67 | 0.00 |
2 | 30 | 55069 | GOETSCHL Renate | 1975 | AUT | 1:52.84 | 2.04 |
3 | 11 | 105997 | BRYDON Emily | 1980 | CAN | 1:52.88 | 2.52 |
4 | 19 | 55576 | GOERGL Elisabeth | 1981 | AUT | 1:52.99 | 3.83 |
5 | 21 | 106402 | VANDERBEEK Kelly | 1983 | CAN | 1:53.00 | 3.95 |
6 | 27 | 515170 | STYGER Nadia | 1978 | SUI | 1:53.17 | 5.99 |
7 | 15 | 55590 | SCHILD M arlies |
1981 | AUT | 1:53.19 | 6.23 |
8 | 12 | 536138 | CLARK Kirsten L | 1977 | USA | 1:53.35 | 8.15 |
9 | 3 | 225206 | ALCOTT Chemmy | 1982 | GBR | 1:53.58 | 10.90 |
10 | 5 | 106022 | JANYK Britt | 1980 | CAN | 1:53.64 | 11.62 |
11 | 26 | 195671 | JACQUEMOD Ingrid | 1978 | FRA | 1:53.71 | 12.46 |
12 | 16 | 515348 | BORGHI Catherine | 1976 | SUI | 1:53.79 | 13.42 |
13 | 18 | 196460 | MARCHAND-ARVIER Marie | 1985 | FRA | 1:53.85 | 14.14 |
13 | 1 | 495318 | RUIZ CASTILLO Carolina | 1981 | SPA | 1:53.85 | 14.14 |
15 | 9 | 537582 | COOK Stacey J | 1984 | USA | 1:53.90 | 14.74 |
16 | 20 | 55750 | FISCHBACHER Andrea | 1985 | AUT | 1:54.00 | 15.94 |
17 | 17 | 55690 | HOSP Nicole | 1983 | AUT | 1:54.22 | 18.57 |
18 | 13 | 55669 | HOLAUS Maria | 1983 | AUT | 1:54.23 | 18.69 |
19 | 23 | 206001 | RIESCH Maria | 1984 | GER | 1:54.38 | 20.49 |
20 | 25 | 515409 | BERTHOD Sylviane | 1977 | SUI | 1:54.39 | 20.61 |
21 | 22 | 515573 | AUFDENBLATTEN Fraenzi | 1981 | SUI | 1:54.46 | 21.45 |
22 | 34 | 206175 | STECHERT Gina | 1987 | GER | 1:54.54 | 22.41 |
23 | 39 | 106666 | RUBENS Shona | 1986 | CAN | 1:54.75 | 24.92 |
24 | 43 | 375018 | COLETTI Alexandra | 1983 | MON | 1:55.09 | 29.00 |
25 | 6 | 296472 | FANCHINI Elena | 1985 | ITA | 1:55.12 | 29.36 |
25 | 4 | 515560 | SCHILD Martina | 1981 | SUI | 1:55.12 | 29.36 |
27 | 10 | 515429 | DUMERMUTH Monika | 1977 | SUI | 1:55.14 | 29.60 |
27 | 7 | 295533 | RECCHIA Lucia | 1980 | ITA | 1:55.14 | 29.60 |
29 | 33 | 196573 | REVILLET Aurelie | 1986 | FRA | 1:55.21 | 30.43 |
30 | 35 | 55596 | WILHELM Kathrin | 1981 | AUT | 1:55.27 | 31.15 |
31 | 46 | 536884 | LUDLOW Libby | 1981 | USA | 1:55.48 | 33.67 |
32 | 41 | 537772 | STIEGLER Resi | 1985 | USA | 1:55.52 | 34.15 |
33 | 24 | 55212 | MEISSNITZER Alexandra | 1973 | AUT | 1:55.62 | 35.35 |
34 | 37 | 296623 | MAZZOTTI Lucia | 1985 | ITA | 1:55.94 | 39.18 |
35 | 31 | 295136 | CECCARELLI Daniela | 1975 | ITA | 1:56.07 | 40.74 |
36 | 49 | 255098 | KRISTJANSDOTTIR Dagny L. | 1980 | ISL | 1:56.19 | 42.18 |
37 | 40 | 106849 | YURKIW Larisa | 1988 | CAN | 1:56.20 | 42.30 |
38 | 42 | 565278 | RABIC Urska | 1985 | SLO | 1:56.47 | 45.53 |
39 | 47 | 296427 | SCHNARF Johanna | 1984 | ITA | 1:56.54 | 46.37 |
40 | 45 | 296242 | GRUENER Angelika | 1983 | ITA | 1:56.84 | 49.96 |
41 | 36 | 296473 | SIORPAES Wendy | 1985 | ITA | 1:56.95 | 51.28 |
42 | 38 | 106465 | LAWRENCE Sherry | 1984 | CAN | 1:57.03 | 52.24 |
43 | 48 | 565261 | ROBNIK Petra | 1984 | SLO | 1:57.33 | 55.84 |
44 | 44 | 55691 | SPONRING Christine | 1983 | AUT | 1:58.08 | 64.82 |
Did not start 1st run:
GARDET Charlene (FRA), LINDELL-VIKARBY Jessica (SWE)
Did not finish 1st run:
PAERSON Anja (SWE), MERIGHETTI Daniela (ITA), BENT Nike (SWE), WOLF Tamara (SUI)