Ross Leads Americans in Downhill
Laurenne Ross (Bend. Ore.) competed in her first FIS Ski World Cup downhill after recovering from a severe knee injury suffered at the U.S. Alpine Championships last season and led the U.S. Ski Team, finishing 11th, in Bad Kleinkirchheim, Austria Sunday. Italy swept the podium with Sofia Goggia, Federica Brignone and Nadia Franchini going 1-2-3.
Weather issues hampered downhill training all week and continued into Sunday as light mist and fog forced FIS officials to move the downhill start down to the super-G start. The ladies also completed and abbreviated downhill training run prior to Sunday morning race. The race start was then delayed as course crews worked to smooth out the rough, icy track.
However, none of that seemed to faze Ross during her run as she charged down the course. But the sigh of relief after crossing the finish line told another story.
“Today was an extremely tough race,” Ross said. “These are the most difficult conditions I’ve skied in since I’ve been injured and to have to race in them was a really big challenge for me.
“I wasn’t sure if I was going to race or not, but when I decided to go for it … I tried to charge and tried to be solid on the front of my skis,” she added. “It didn’t feel good, but I suppose nobody’s run felt that great. It’s a difficult hill and the conditions are kind of ridiculous.”
Alice McKennis (Glenwood Springs, Colo.) provided another bright spot for the Americans as she posted her second top-20 result of the season in 16th. Stacey Cook (Mammoth Mountain, Calif.) was 18th; Breezy Johnson (Victor, Idaho) 20th; and Lindsey Vonn (Vail, Colo.) 22nd.
“I knew it was going to be a struggle this morning from the training run,” Vonn said. “Really poor visibility, pretty icy and bumpy conditions. I really had no grip on the ice and I felt like I was skiing on marbles.”
Up next, the women’s FIS World Cup circuit continues with super-G and downhill Jan. 20-21 in Cortina, Italy, where overall World Cup leader Mikaela Shiffrin (Eagle-Vail, Colo.) is expected to compete.
RESULTS
Women’s Downhill
