BEAVER CREEK — On the mountain where Norway’s Lasse Kjus became the only racer to win medals in all five disciplines at a world alpine championships 16 years ago, the world’s best female racer over the past three seasons is bidding to do the same.
Slovenia’s Tina Maze captured a gold medal in Friday’s downhill and claimed silver in Tuesday’s super-G. She is the only racer here who can win in all five disciplines, and she figures to be a strong contender in the remaining women’s races — alpine combined, giant slalom and slalom.
American fans hoped this week would belong to Vail’s Lindsey Vonn, with EagleVail’s Mikaela Shiffrin taking over the spotlight next week in giant slalom and slalom, but the most compelling drama so far has been the duel between Maze and Anna Fenninger of Austria.
Fenninger took gold in super-G, 0.03 of a second ahead of Maze, and claimed silver in downhill, 0.02 of a second behind Maze.
After Vonn won the World Cup overall title three times in four years, Maze ran away with it in 2013 with a record point total. That was the year Vonn injured her right knee at the world championships, but Vonn wasn’t going to catch Maze even if she hadn’t been hurt.
Maze didn’t have a great World Cup in 2014, but at the Olympics she claimed gold medals in downhill and giant slalom, and she has a comfortable lead in the overall standings this season. For now, Maze (pronounced Mah-ZAY) is the woman to beat.
“She is, and it’s impressive,” said former World Cup great Pernilla Wiberg of Sweden, a two-time Olympic gold medalist. “Last season, she didn’t do anything in the World Cup, then she came to the Olympics and, wow, she just nailed it. She did much better (this season) in the World Cup before the championships. She knows she’s a championship girl. She gets energy from that, and she’s on a roll.”
Prior to these championships Maze had two gold and four silver medals at world championships, and she earned two silver medals at the 2010 Olympics. She has medals in every discipline except slalom, and if she goes into the women’s slalom next weekend with four medals, the ski world will be transfixed to see if she can achieve what Kjus did in 1999.
“I know I can do this,” Maze said. “I knew that before I came here, but thinking about it makes no sense. You have to go day by day, turn by turn from discipline to discipline.”
Slovenia is a mountainous nation of 2 million on the Adriatic Sea that was part of Yugoslavia before becoming independent in 1991. Maze was 8 years old.
She made her World Cup debut at age 15, and Friday she became the oldest woman to win a world championships medal at 31. Racing all events against women who specialize in two or three is a grueling program, but she is up to it.
“I think I have chance to win some more medals here,” Maze said. “Of course it’s exhausting, because other girls will have more time to train slalom and GS. I’m healthy, I have good physical shape, and in the end, it’s not exhausting, it’s fun.”
Vonn set the standard for strength and fitness on the women’s tour during her run of dominance (2008-12). In the process, she spurred Maze to work just as hard.
“That’s the base of everything, you need to be strong in athletics,” Maze said. “Then you can go up and bring down good runs. Without that, you don’t want to go up there and ski down, it’s too risky. I just like to be in shape. I like to be strong and sure in my moves. Lindsey was a big inspiration for me.”
Maze has appeared relaxed here while sensing Vonn and the rest of the U.S. women have felt the pressure of performing at home.
“Big wish and big will is sometimes hard to handle,” Maze said. “Sometimes if it’s too much pressure, you’re just not relaxed, and (being relaxed is) the magic of skiing.”
Maze certainly is a free spirit. In 2013 she recorded a in Slovenia.
“I listen to my own music, which is my heartbeat,” Maze said. “Just be yourself.”
Tina Maze bio
Age: 31
Olympic medals: Four (two gold)
World championships medals: eight (three gold)
World Cup wins: 26
World Cup overall title: 2013 (leads this season)
Other notable achievements: She is one of six women who have won in all five World Cup disciplines and one of three to do it in a single season … She won the World Cup overall in 2013 with a record total of 2,414 points, shattering the previous record set by Hermann Maier who had 2,000 in the 2000 season.
