Marlies Schild produced a stunning second run to win the Courchevel Women's Slalom. With her younger sister, Bernadette, having lead after the first run, Marlies produced a storming second run to win her 34th World Cup Slalom. Sweden's Frida Hansdotter ... took second with Bernadette Schild placing third.
With many of the racers having flown in direct from the St Moritz World Cup races, the Courchevel race takes place down the same piste that is used for the Scottish Championships at the end of the season.
The first run saw a disaster for Tessa Worley that will see her season end, just two days after having won in St Moritz. Worley got caught on the tails of her skis and then slid through a sponsors banner. She initially rose to her feet quickly, but was later taken down the hill in a sled. “Honestly, I'm very worried,” French women's coach Anthony Sechaud told the press. ”It's a big blow for her. The contrast between now and two days ago has been a shock.” After the race it was announced that Worley had damage to the lateral meniscus in the right knee. The first run also saw Susannah Riesch crash out and reinjure her knee.
The Austrian Team dominated the race, ending up with six in the ten, including four in the first five as Kathrin Zettel and Michaela Kirkgasser placed fourth and fifth respectively. Carmen Thalmann produced a career best performance to place seventh from a start number of 21.
Schild's win ties her with Swiss legend Vreni Schneider and is something that has been some time in coming before she was injured last season, it has been two years since her last World Cup win. Schild, who had won the two previous World Cup Slalom's held in Courchevel, said after the race that “I wasn't really nervous, because I knew there was no other way but to give it all out to be faster than my younger sister. It was just a lot of fun again, that is the main thing. The hill here in Courchevel is not easy. It's steep and you have to push really hard. You simply can't be conservative.”
It was not a good day for some of the big names of Slalom racing with Maria Hoefl-Riesch crashing out just after the split on the first run and Michaela Shiffrin having "an off day," finishing 12th and Tina Maze in 17th. Frida Hansdotter made the most of this to take second:Â “I struggled with one of my poles right at the start of the second run and definitely lost some time there, but I'm very happy with a podium today," she said after the race.
Next up are the speed races for the girls before they head to Lienz after the Christmas break.
Full results