Press release -
Sara Hector wins again in Kronplatz
In the last Giant Slalom before the Olympic Games, Sara Hector once again confirmed her supreme class in this discipline. With her third Giant Slalom victory this season on Tuesday in Kronplatz, the Swedish athlete further extends her lead in the discipline ranking. Atle Lie McGrath took second place in the Night Race in Schladming for his first podium in the Slalom.
"When you are on the podium as often as Sara Hector, you are naturally one of the absolute favourites for the Olympic Games. Things are looking very good for her. The main thing now is to stay healthy," said HEAD Racing Director Rainer Salzgeber. "Since she started racing with the new skis, she's podiumed all the time. We have seen extremely varied conditions at the competitions so far. The equipment was always perfectly tuned. Her service man Reinhard Berbig does a superb job. With Atle Lie McGrath, we have been hoping for a long time that he would podium in the Slalom. This was a bit of a surprise in the end, because the past weeks have not been easy since he fractured his thumb on New Year's Eve. He just needs to ski normally, and that is what he did today. He is a top performer. Following on from Lech/Zürs, this is the second podium this season, which is simply perfect."
"I didn't think I'd won when I crossed the finish line"
Sara Hector was in second place in Kronplatz after the first run, 34 hundredths of a second behind Petra Vlhova. With the seventh-fastest time on the second run, the 29-year-old overtook the half-time leader from Slovakia. "It's unbelievable. I was surprised because I also made a mistake on the second run. I didn't think I'd won when I crossed the finish line, but it's so cool. I really battled to carry the speed through every gate. I've always had the power, but maybe I'm now skiing with a bit more feeling," said Sara Hector in analysing her success at the finish. Ragnhild Mowinckel from Norway finished eighth overall. Coralie Frasse-Sombet from France finished 18th with the fourth-fastest time on the second run. With bib number 49, Vanessa Kasper from Switzerland qualified for the second run in 30th place, and then moved up to 24th overall with the sixth-best time. Her compatriot Camille Rast finished in 21st place.
First Slalom podium for Atle Lie McGrath
Atle Lie McGrath's performance at the legendary Night Race in Schladming was also sensational. The Norwegian athlete finished second to stand on the podium for the first time in this discipline. He missed his first World Cup victory by just three hundredths of a second. Previously, an eighth-place in Val d'Isere in December 2021 had been his best Slalom result. In the Giant Slalom, the 21-year-old celebrated his first ever podium finish in December 2020 when he came second in Alta Badia. Atle Lie McGrath started in Schladming with bib number 34 and was in seventh place after the first run. "I'm lost for words. The last two or three weeks have not been easy after I injured my thumb. The first run went well, and so did the second one. In the end, it was a podium finish. This is a cool day today," said the Norwegian. Tanguy Nef from Switzerland finished in tenth place, Albert Popov from Bulgaria was eleventh and Timon Haugan from Norway finished 14th.
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