On a chopped-up course, Andre Myhrer never looked better.
The 23-year-old Swede won a slalom for his first World Cup victory on Sunday, preserving his lead during the second run on the deteriorated Birds of Prey piste.
Myhrer was followed by Canada's Michael Janyk and Germany's Felix Neureuther on a day when US skiers did not deliver before home fans.
PHOTO: AP
Bode Miller, who on Friday won a World Cup downhill for the first time in two years, left the course 37 seconds into his opening run. US teammate Ted Ligety, the Olympic combined champion, was second going into the final leg but straddled a gate.
Myhrer was fastest in the opening leg, then consolidated his lead to win in 1 minute, 48.60 seconds. Only 22 of 30 skiers completed the second leg. Myhrer's previous best result was second in Slovenia two seasons ago. He had reached podium on three other occasions.
Janyk climbed from fifth after the opening run to second finish second in 1:49.33, the first World Cup podium of his career. Neureuther was third in 1:50.00, his first top-three finish.
PHOTO: EPA
Janyk, whose sister Britt placed 11th on Sunday in a super-G at Lake Louise, Alberta, was given a red bib for taking the lead in the slalom standings.
"It's more than I expected," Janyk said. "It's a dream for all racers to wear it. Now I've got to keep it."
The average age of the top three was 23. Canada's Thomas Grandi, 33, and Austria's Manfred Pranger, 28, were the only veterans to crack the top 10.
"This is a new generation maybe," Myhrer said.
This marked the third consecutive race that Austrians failed to finish among the top three.
The last such result came from Olympic bronze medalist Rainer Schoenfelder in Thursday's super-combi.
Olympic champion Benjamin Raich straddled the second gate, putting a quick end to his hopes of winning his second slalom in as many tries. Raich won the season-opening slalom at Finland three weeks ago.
"I've been reading about a big crisis on the team and the mood on the team is not very good," said Raich, who was 11th in Saturday's giant slalom. "But I understand people are going to write such things because we win all the time and so in Austria people expect us to win, they are used to victories and not what's going on now."
Defending World Cup slalom champion Giorgio Rocca of Italy also straddled a gate, though he got a little further down the course.
"I was going from ice to snow and my skis gripped the snow," said Rocca, who is returning from a knee injury. "I jerked forward and my ski hit the pole and then I was out."
Miller completed Saturday's giant slalom, posting the fastest time in the opening run but finished only 12th after catching his arm on a gate his second trip down.
The last time Miller finished a slalom was in January in Kitzbuehel, Austria, where he finished 18th. Miller has not won a slalom since Dec. 13, 2004, in Sestriere, Italy.
After seven races, Norway's Aksel Lund Svindal leads the World Cup overall standings with 235 points. Switzerland's Didier Cuche sits second on 204, while Peter Fill of Italy is third with 184.
Goetschl Triumphs
Austria's Renate Goetschl won the first super-G of the World Cup season on Sunday, with Lindsey Kildow the runner-up in yet another strong finish.
Kildow had dominated the two downhills, winning on Saturday and placing second on Friday behind Germany's Maria Riesch.
In the super-G, Goetschl won in 1 minute, 20.86 seconds and was followed by Kildow of the US in 1:21.73. Kelly VanderBeek was third in 1:21.77, becoming the first Canadian woman to reach the Lake Louise podium since racing began there in 1989.
"I'm so excited," said VanderBeek. "The best possible first podium would have been at the Olympics. The next best thing is in Canada. I'm just elated."
It was the 39th victory of Goetschl's career. On Saturday, she finished second in the downhill race.
Temperatures climbed to minus-10oC but a wind made it feel colder on the 1.8-km course, about half the length of the downhill route.
Goetschl said she didn't let the conditions affect her.
"Today I felt wonderful and I didn't think about the bad weather," she said. "I just tried to find my way down as fast as possible."
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