• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Austria win Team race

With only eight teams in the Team Event it was always going to be a quick fire event yet the young Austrian team skied safely to Gold. The racing was not without its upsets and it was a shame that there were not more teams entered. From the first race between the Norwegians and the Swiss, the racing was exciting down the tight parallel slalom course. Many felt that the Swiss and the Austrians were the two class teams yet when the Norwegians upset the Swiss in the first round, this proved a wake up call to the remaining teams. The Norwegians would go all the way to the final.

Heat 2 in the first round, it was a straight knock out format saw the Italians and the Germans lock horns and after a dead heat in the first race, two crashes by the Germans gave the tie to the Italians. France, lead off by the daughter of Luc Alphand, an Olympic winner in his own right had to rely on having a better combined time of their fastest two racers to get past Slovenia after having been two races in front after the first two racers. In the other first round race, Austria despatch the Canadians four to nothing.

The semi finals saw Italy and Norway paired together and Austria and France.  The Italians recovered from losing the first two races to tie with the Norwegians. Norway was somewhat restricted by losing their second female to an overnight illness and with no reserves available, the Norwegians had to rely on a faster combined time of their fastest two racers.

In the other semi final, the Austrians were 2 -1 up after the first three races and when their final racer skied out nearing the finish, the result was dependent on combined times. When the announcer gave the win to Austria there was a huge cheer and the French had lost out by a mere two tenths of a second.

France won the small final fairly easily despite the shock of seeing Estelle Alphand almost crashing out. The remaining three French racers were all comfortable winners. And so with Franz Klammer having pulled out of forerunning the Grand Final late the night before, it was left to Stephan Eberharter and Sigrid Wolf to forerun the final. This was an easy home run for the Austrians as the Norwegian second racer crashed out and this gave the Austrians an unassailable two zero lead with the third Norwegian not racing.

With only two racers, one male and one female, competing at the Games for Team GB, there was no team entered. There had been talk of a scratch competition for the single racer teams but this did not materialise.