Aspen – Croatia’s Janica Kostelic is taking a year off to let her battered body recover from years of wear and tear on the World Cup. Sweden’s Anja Paerson had offseason knee surgery and hasn’t been on the podium in three races this season.
Wrap those threads with Austria’s traditional superpower status in alpine racing and you get dominance that has overwhelmed the women’s World Cup so far this season.
Austria has captured seven of a possible nine podium positions, beginning with a sweep in slalom Nov. 11 in Levi, Finland. Austria went 1-3-4 in Saturday’s giant slalom here and 1-2-5 in Sunday’s slalom, led by Marlies Schild, who is 2-for-2 in slalom this season.
“I am very happy,” Austrian women’s coach Herbert Mandl said. “We never have had such an opening of the season in the technical events (giant slalom and slalom). With three victories so far, that’s very good. Girls like Marlies Schild and Niki Hosp, they are still pretty young and have good success. Kathrin Zettel and Michaela Kirchgasser are even younger, and they already catch up with the top.”
Schild is only 25, but she knows Hosp (23), Kirchgasser (21), Zettel (20) and others are sure to keep the pressure on.
“We have a lot of younger ones,” Schild said, “so the older ones also have to work hard.”
The rest of the tour is hoping things change this week with the first speed races of the season at Lake Louise, Alberta. Ski Club Vail’s Lindsey Kildow can’t wait to get there.
“I’m really excited to finally do some speed,” said Kildow, a DNF in Saturday’s giant slalom who finished 16th on Sunday. “It’ll be sweet.”
It will be even sweeter if European cancellations bring men’s and women’s super combined events to Aspen or Beaver Creek next week.
Women’s races scheduled Dec. 9-10 in St. Moritz, Switzerland, were canceled for lack of snow. Men’s races that weekend in Val d’Isere, France, are doubtful, with a decision due Wednesday. If the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association secures sponsorship by then, the super combined races will be in Colorado.
“It would be awesome,” Kildow said. “I can’t even tell you how excited I would be to race in Colorado again. It’s just a great opportunity for Americans to try to hopefully get some better results.”
Kildow and teammate Resi Stiegler had poor first runs – “I was all over the place,” each said separately – and Stiegler wasn’t much better in the second run, finishing 25th. Stiegler was the top American (10th) in the Levi slalom.
“I just need to put two runs together,” said Stiegler, whose father, Pepi, won the 1964 Olympic slalom for Austria. “It’s pretty simple: I just need to get it done. I feel strong, and I had a good race in Levi. I have good sections. This is a pretty tough hill, especially with not training on hills like this.”
Stiegler wore tiger ears on her helmet last season. Here she raced with bright red streaks in her hair and pink “Shred” goggles designed by Olympic combined champion Ted Ligety, one of her best friends.
“I’ll help him launch his goggle line,” Stiegler said, “and we’re just going to take down the world together, I guess.”
