Podium Profile: Walchhofer's win big for Austrians

The Austrian men got a pick-me-up here as Michael Walchhofer stormed to first place in the downhill — the Austrian’s first win of the season.
BEAVER CREEK, Colo. — The Austrian men got a pick-me-up here as Michael Walchhofer stormed to first place in the downhill for the team's first win of the season.
    The former dominators of the ski racing world struggled by their standards last season, but Walchhofer is excited about the momentum.
    “It’s a great thing for me,” Walchhofer said, “but not just for me — it’s for the whole Austrian team, very important. … The Austrian press are waiting for a victory from the race, and we are skiing very well at the moment,”
    He said the win was particularly rewarding because Austrians no longer dominate the World Cup, and more and more competitors are vying for the podium.
     “It’s not so easy to win,” he said. “At the moment, it’s international. The races are so international.”
    One of those competitors was Steven Nyman of the U.S. After completing a run in flat light and snowy conditions, he was sitting in first place. Then the sun started to peak from the clouds and Walchhofer took advantage. He skied a 1:13.74, five hundredths faster than Nyman.
    “My run was very OK,” he said. “My congratulations to Beaver Creek for doing a good job with the base, but it was not easy to ski. It was bumpy and icy.”
    It is the 32-year-old’s 12th career World Cup win; his ninth in downhill; his first since Dec. 29, 2006, at Bormio; and his first win at Beaver Creek. Now he has the cycle at Beaver Creek with finishes of first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth.