No delays this time but it took a long time for Fabienne Suter to be dislodged from having the fastest time on the second training run. Tina Weirather and Anna Fenninger came ... closest but they could not dislodge the girl who had started number one! While you win nothing in the training runs, you can build confidence and this is vital if you are to win the Gold on race day. Unlike the World Cup that is decided over the course of the season, the Olympics is a one off race. Kajsa Kling and Tina Maze rounded out the top five finishers.
Suter was not guaranteed a starting spot going into the training runs but in winning the second of three training runs, she has secured her starting spot. “I'm really relieved that I have made it. It's always a certain kind of pressure which runs with you and is on your mind. Today was very important for me,” said Suter. “There are two or three spots where I didn't run well, and I'm going to have to examine exactly what I'll want to do differently there.”
With no Lindsey Vonn for the media to focus on, attention has turned to Julia Mancuso. Mancuso described the course as “a good course because you have to be precise,” said Mancuso. “You can't get away with really anything on there. You really have to nail every section and there's a lot of flat and steep - there's nothing really medium - and the speed feels high. ... The steep parts are definitely where I need to improve.” With one more training run to come Mancuso is more concerned with “skiing well. ... It's really more about skiing in a good position and trusting (yourself) and looking for speed everywhere.”
Mancuso has had a tough season. Things did not start well for her and she has spent the majority of her season sorting her equipment out so that when it came to Sochi she was dialled in. Like Marcel Hirscher, she has looked at every little nut and bolt to make sure she can get the fastest time possible.
For Chemmy Alcott, the long road back to full fitness and health is still on-going but she was happy with her second training run. After her run she said: ""I am really proud of my performance today. I am much closer to the leader even though I made a mistake on my run. I tried to charge it today and it worked. I am one of the few girls racing here today who has not raced this course before (she did not compete in Sochi last year). So for the first time for ten years, I am a rookie on a downhill course. I just want to go out there and put down a clean run and be satisfied I put myself on the edge. I can't put numbers on it. I am just looking forward to getting out there and pushing myself."
And what did she think of the course? "The course is fantastic. It is the Olympics, the course has to be special. To throw yourself down an Olympic course five and a half months after surgery makes me proud."
Full training run results