Janica Kostelic finished in second place in qualifying for a women's World Cup downhill Thursday, a place the three-time Olympic champion wanted to avoid.
Swiss skier Sylviane Berthod was first in 1 minute, 38.09 seconds, while Kostelic was another .44 seconds back. Sweden's Nike Bent and Switzerland's Nadia Styger were tied for third in 1:38.58.
"Will someone tell me what I did," Kostelic said. "I skied so bad the past two days. I didn't do anything differently today. I have no idea."
PHOTO: EPA
The tour's overall leader will start 29th since the race will be run in reverse order of the top 30 finishers. Some skiers believe Thursday and Friday's downhills will favor those who start in the middle of the pack, not those out of the gate early or late.
The heavy snow lining at the Franz Klammer slope may get faster after the early starters, then develop ruts to handicap later skiers.
Linsdey Kildow, seeking her third straight downhill win, earned an early start -- second out of the gates -- after landing just 29th. The American tops the discipline standings, followed by Austrians Michaela Dorfmeister and Alexandra Meissnitzer.
Meissnitzer was delighted with her 11th place.
"I will start around 20th -- that's perfect. That's exactly where I want to be," the Austrian said.
Skiers said the new slope was slow and flat at the top and they had to find speed themselves, which is unusual for a downhill. Since the last World Cup races held in 1997 at Bad Kirchkleinheim, the course has been redesigned.
Kostelic refuses to dwell on the upcoming Olympics, where the Croat has to live up to expectations raised by three golds from the last games.
"I don't think about it so much, I just try to ignore it," Kostelic said. "But you can't ignore it -- when you are alone in your room it comes into your mind."
Whether it is Kostelic, her longtime World Cup rival Anja Paerson, or promising 21-year-old Stacey Cook, the women skiers feel the pressure building ahead of the Turin Games, which begin Feb. 10.
Kostelic is favored to add to her golds in giant slalom, combined and slalom from the 2002 Salt Lake City Games, especially after another three-gold performance at last year's world championships.
The Croat won't undertake special preparations for Turin, just concentrate on the World Cup circuit, where she leads the overall standings.
"I look at it this way, I try to do one race at a time," she said. "The races are the best way to prepare."
That was also Alexandra Meissnitzer's philosophy as the women ready themselves for two World Cup downhills and a Super-G this weekend in Bad Kleinkirchheim.
"Just go fast in the races -- that is the best way to gain confidence," Meissnitzer said.
Meissnitzer is the best downhiller this year behind Lindsey Kildow and Michaela Dorfmeister. Her three top-four finishes sealed the veteran's Olympic berth -- not easy on the powerful Austrian team.
Now, Meissnitzer can relax as she thinks about an Olympic medal.
"The pressure is off me now," Meissnitzer said. "I would like to win a medal, but everyone wants a medal."
Cook, the talented American newcomer, still has to earn her spot at the games on the US team, the best behind Austria.
"You don't have to feel the pressure if you don't want to," Cook said of the Olympics. "But it's hard to ignore it -- it's just such a big deal."
Cook isn't eying an Olympic medal, not while coping with early success in her first full World Cup season. In two downhills at Lake Louise, the American was eighth and 10th.
"I'm learning a lot -- more than my brain can handle," she said.
Kildow has won the last two downhills and will be among the many Americans expected to bring back medals from Turin.
"Right now I'm focusing on the World Cup, but the projections are in my mind. It's creeping up," Kildow said.
Paerson has fought Kostelic for the World Cup season title for years, but left Salt Lake City four years ago clutching a bronze and silver. Disappointed, the Swede bounced back with two golds at last year's worlds in Santa Caterina, Italy.
"I will enter five events again. It would be great if one would be a gold," she said.
Kostelic isn't promising another multi-gold performance. The Croat said she would be happy with just one more to dangle from her neck.
"I think my best chance is the combined," she said. "In some of the other disciplines there are a lot of girls skiing well."
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