COPPER MOUNTAIN — Seeing Lindsey Vonn atop the World Cup overall standings is not a surprise. That is, after all, where the Ski Club Vail alumna finished last season when she became the first American woman to win the World Cup in 25 years.
But two races into the 2008-09 season, after a giant slalom and slalom? Her least successful disciplines?
“Did you ever think I would be leading the overall after two technical races?” Vonn said last week with a self-deprecating laugh. “Seriously, it was comical to me. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, how is this even happening right now?’ ”
Vonn had never been on the podium of a World Cup slalom until Nov. 15, when she won at Levi, Finland. She also was ninth Oct. 25 in a giant slalom at Soelden, Austria, only her fourth career top 10 in GS.
Vonn is the world’s dominant speed skier, with 10 of her 14 career World Cup wins coming in downhill and two more in super-G. Last season she never cracked the top 10 in slalom, but much to her surprise she will be wearing the red World Cup leader’s bib for Sunday’s slalom at Aspen.
“Yeah, it’s going to be different,” Vonn said. “It’s going to be challenging, because Aspen is so difficult for slalom and GS. It’s very, very demanding. Hopefully, everything will go as well as it has been. I really would love to get a win on our home soil. I didn’t get that opportunity last year.”
In a snowstorm last year at Aspen, Vonn finished fourth in a downhill that some said should not have been run because of poor visibility and accumulating snow on the track. Vonn had won the previous week at Lake Louise, Alberta, and she finished first or second in six of the seven downhills the remainder of the season.
Vonn says her slalom win was the product of better equipment, rather than a sudden improvement in her technique. She’s always had slalom talent, but a new boot setup is giving her more precise control, and she loves the latest version of her slalom skis.
“That’s essentially the only thing that’s different,” said Vonn, who bruised a knee training last week but has been training well this week. “I’m holding well on ice. I can grip, no problem, I can do whatever I want. That’s what’s made the biggest difference.”
Vonn scored the vast majority of her World Cup points last year in downhill. If she can score more points in slalom and giant slalom this year, it will increase her chances of defending the overall title. Tamara McKinney is the only other American woman to win the overall (1983). Bode Miller also won the World Cup overall last season, joining Vonn in the first U.S. sweep of the most coveted titles in skiing.
“My biggest goal for the season is to defend that title, but it’s something you really can’t focus on,” Vonn said. “You just have to ski your best, every single day. Last season, I wasn’t even thinking about the overall, it wasn’t even on my radar screen until the last month of the season. Hopefully, if things keep going well in slalom, I won’t have as much pressure in downhill and super-G.”
Jim Tracy, head women’s coach of the U.S. Ski Team, said Vonn’s slalom win isn’t such a surprise considering she won the second run of the final slalom last year.
“I don’t think it’s really a shock,” Tracy said. “She’s actually won the last three runs of slalom on the World Cup.”
Vonn managed to win in Levi despite an error in the second run that forced her to chuck her skis sideways to stay in the course.
“Honestly, the first run in Levi, I was just cruising,” Vonn said. “I wasn’t doing anything special. That’s why it was so surprising to me. I wasn’t like fully attacking, I was just trying to arc everything I could, and using the ski really well. It’s not like I’m doing something I can’t repeat, which is really confidence-boosting for me.”
John Meyer: 303-954-1616 or jmeyer@denverpost.com
