Press release -
Cornelia Hütter rocks as the speed queen
An impressive performance from Cornelia Hütter in Beaver Creek confirms her position as the best in the Downhill. The 32-year-old Austrian athlete, who won the Downhill Crystal Globe last season, wins the first race of the season in this discipline on the Birds of Prey run on Saturday. Lara Gut-Behrami finishes in third place. In the Super-G on Sunday, the HEAD World Cup Rebels podium again with Lara Gut-Behrami and Ariane Rädler in second and third place. Atle Lie McGrath celebrates his third podium this season, finishing second in the Slalom in Val d'Isere.
"It was an ideal performance by Cornelia Hütter in the Downhill event. Following Justin Murisier's victory on the same run last week, it's brilliant that we have won both Downhill events. This is an excellent start to the season," says HEAD Racing Director Rainer Salzgeber. "Lara Gut-Behrami is at the top level, she's right up there in front. With these two podiums, it is clear that she is aiming for victory. This will motivate her even more for the coming weekends. Ariane Rädler is up among the leaders too, despite so many setbacks. Coming into this weekend, everyone had a lot of respect for this run, so it’s really great that she finished on the podium. We saw Lindsey Vonn put in a promising performance yesterday. If she continues to improve the way she imagines, then we can look forward to a lot more action from her. Atle Lie McGrath demonstrated awesome strength on both days. The conditions in the Giant Slalom were somewhat dubious. He skied the first run and half the second run perfectly, which he followed with a brilliant performance in the Slalom. We've got six athletes in the top 14, which shows that the equipment is working well and that we are in a very strong position. I am particularly pleased that we have been so successful on different slopes and in different conditions."
"It's an honour to win here"
For Cornelia Hütter it is her seventh World Cup victory, her third in the Downhill. "I managed to win today by focusing on racing, not so much on skiing well. It was wild the way I skied down that run. It's an honour to win here. It was mega steep, you can't even imagine. It had everything in it and was a cool course to ski," emphasised Cornelia Hütter at the finish. Lara Gut-Behrami podiumed for the first time this season in third place. World Cup points were also picked up by Laura Pirovano from Italy in eleventh place, Kajsa Vickhoff Lie from Norway who was twelfth, Stephanie Venier from Austria 17th, Corinne Suter from Switzerland 21st, Nina Ortlieb and Ariane Rädler from Austria 22nd and 23rd, Elena Curtoni from Italy 24th, Laura Gauche from France 28th, and Delia Durrer from Switzerland in 30th place.
Lindsey Vonn started ahead of the pack
Lindsey Vonn, who skied the Downhill course ahead of the competitors, was confident about her planned comeback: "It was really cool, and I enjoyed it. I'm ready for St. Moritz, but I might need a few more races to find my rhythm."
"A result like this is pure satisfaction"
The HEAD women's team continued their run of success on Sunday at the Super-G in Beaver Creek: Lara Gut-Behrami finished second, Ariane Rädler third. For the Austrian athlete, it was the second podium in her career. She started with bib number 20 and delivered an amazing performance on the lower section of the run. The 29-year-old stood on the podium for the first time in January 2022 when she finished third in the Super-G in Altenmarkt-Zauchensee. "I was disappointed on Saturday, but today I knew I could depend on my strengths. I wasn't sure I had done well when I crossed the line, but then I saw the three and that was great. I managed to build my strength during the last season. A result like this is pure satisfaction," said a delighted Ariane Rädler. The previous day's winner, Cornelia Hütter, finished in fourth place, just missing the podium by five hundredths of a second. Points were also bagged by Kajsa Vickhoff Lie in seventh place, Elena Curtoni ninth, Stephanie Venier 13th, Karen Clement from France 17th, Laura Pirovano 8th, Corinne Suter 19th, Keely Cashman from the USA in 21st place, Magdalena Egger from Austria 23rd, Laura Gauche 27th, Emma Aicher from Germany 28th, and Lisa Grill from Austria in 30th place.
Third podium of the season for Atle Lie McGrath
In the men's Slalom in Val d'Isere, Atle Lie McGrath once again had reason to celebrate after finishing second. The 24-year-old Norwegian athlete kicked-off the season by podiuming in third place in the Giant Slalom in Sölden, and then again in third place in the Slalom in Gurgl. The first run of the Slalom in Val d'Isere saw Atle Lie McGrath fifth, but with a solid second run, he moved up another three places. "Skiing was really fun today and when you cross the finish line and the green light comes on, it's even better," said Atle Lie McGrath. "I wasn't able to push 100 percent on the first run, but when I saw Lucas on the second run, I knew I had to go full throttle. I'm really happy with the results this season; I don't feel under pressure, not even from myself. Val d'Isere hasn't always been very kind to me, but now we're friends."
Tobias Kastlunger clocks fastest run
Tobias Kastlunger clocked by far the best time on the second run in the Slalom. The Italian athlete finished seventh overall - his best World Cup result so far. In total, no fewer than six HEAD World Cup Rebels finished in the top 14: Dave Ryding from Great Britain was ninth, Armand Marchant from Belgium eleventh, Laurie Taylor from Great Britain twelfth, and Johannes Strolz from Austria finished in 14th place.
Joan Verdu best HEAD World Cup Rebel in the Giant Slalom
In the Giant Slalom in Val d'Isere on Saturday, which was heavily affected by the weather, Joan Verdu was the best HEAD World Cup Rebel in seventh place. Points were also scored by Alexander Schmid from Germany in 15th place, Tommy Ford from the USA 18th, Atle Lie McGrath 21st, and Alexis Pinturault from France, who finished in 28th place.
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