Manuel Feller ended the 2020-2021 World Cup season with his second win of the season as he came from sixth after the first run. Clement Noel and Alexis Pinturault joined the Austrian on the podium as first run leader, Marco Schwarz dropped to sixth with Alex Vinatzer and Loic Meillard finishing in fourth and fifth. Britain's Dave Ryding finished in joint 14th.
Schwarz had already wrapped up the Slalom Globe before the race and he put in a solid performance to lead after the first run. This was a race that was about racers racing in relaxed form and seeing how many of them had worked their way back up the rankings from the first race of the season.
Feller had started the season ranked 26th and now he has two wins of the tour and with the second win has moved up to finish 4th in the standings for the season and solidly in the standings for the top seven seeds come the first race of next season. Luca Aerni is another that moved up from 49 on the rankings in Alta Badia to now be 16 on the WCSL list, not far behind Ryding and with Daniel Yule one place above him.
Yule had another tough day at the office as he skied out on the first run. the fine margins that separate a fast run from a DNF have bitten him hard this season as he dropped from a top seven seed to being ranked 15th and just staying in the elite group.
Aerni posted the fastest time on the second run to lift himself into contention and it was only a stunning run from Alexis Pinturault that dislodged him from the leaders seat. Pinturault has had a pretty solid Slalom season, three times he has been on the podium, and this has helped him in the successful quest for the Overall Globe. He admitted to being tired after the effort he put in the day before to secure the GS and Overall Globe yet relaxed and allowed his skis to do the work. The result: Third place.
Feller was not far off the time that Pinturault posted for the run but his combined time had him in the lead with five more racers to go. At this stage in the proceedings, Dave Ryding was heading for 16th spot and this would have seen him left Lenzerheide with no points as only the top 15 score points. It was a nervous time.
Ryding had come down the course solidly but a few small mistakes had niggled away before he skied wide and lost a heap of time. The summer rest has been earned and with Major and Taylor on the tour again next season with him, the Brits are coming! Can all three score points in the same race? Wouldn't that be great!
When Linus Strasser came down and dropped down the leaderboard, Feller smiled as he edged closer to the second win. Then the race turned on its head.
First Ramon Zenhaeusern crashed out and then Adrian Pertl failed to finish and this secured a points finish for Ryding.
When Clement Noel slipped into second just 0.08 behind Feller, Austria had the win but would it be Feller or Schwarz?
Schwarz has had a long season and his consistency in being one of only two racers to score points in every round went a long way towards how he won the Globe. It was not the win he wanted today but sixth as a large error in the run in to the finish dropped him down the results.
Belief in himself was very strong all season, Schwarz admitted and he sees himself racing not just Slalom in the future but maybe up to Super G? Anyone else thinking he has his eye on the Overall?
The camaraderie of the World Cup saw the claps and cheers for JB Grange as he joined Julian Lizeroux in bowing out of the World Cup in taking his last run down on the second run. Chapeau JB and many thanks for the memories.
Full results
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