Steven Nyman added to the high-speed drama of the week. Michael Walchhofer added to the Austrian men's reputation.
Nyman recovered from a harrowing one-ski maneuver in mid-course to remind the crowd of a dangerous week on the Birds of Prey slope -- which hospitalized Aksel Lund Svindal -- while Walchhofer ended Austria's winless streak by triumphing in Friday's World Cup downhill.
"I did that every single training run, but I did it best this time," said Nyman, who despite his fate-tempting run finished second five-hundredths of a second behind Walchhofer. "But I skied where I wanted to ski and I hit the line the whole way down the course. I'm pleased with my run."
PHOTO: AP
Walchhofer claimed Austria's first victory of the season in 1 minute, 13.74 seconds, the nation's first since Benjamin Raich won last season's final slalom in March.
Despite winning every Nations Cup since 1993, Austrians often struggle to win their first race of the season. Last year, an Austrian didn't win until Dec. 28, a downhill victory by Walchhofer in Bormio, Italy, to end a 13-race slump.
"It was an important victory for me," Walchhofer said. "It's one of the most difficult downhills. The Austrian press was waiting and watching for this victory. Our team is doing well at the moment, but it's not easy to win."
PHOTO: EPA
The result ended the Americans' four-year winning streak at Beaver Creek, with Walchhofer becoming the first non-American to win since Austria's Stephan Eberharter in 2002.
Nyman, who was skiing through particularly heavy snowfalls, came through the colossal Golden Eagle jump but then sat back on the tails of his skis going through the Abyss. He ended up skiing through it on one leg with the other in the air.
Skiers enter the Golden Eagle jump going as fast as 110kph and soar as far as 70m. In Tuesday's downhill training, Svindal sat too far back on his tails coming off the jump and crashed, breaking facial bones and also requiring abdominal surgery.
"I've got long legs. I look like a bird when I'm flying on the hill," Nyman said. "But I'm kind of used to those moves. I'm part cat."
Though it meant the end of the US winning streak, Nyman kept alive the Americans' string of downhill podium finishes in Beaver Creek. The US men have climbed the podium at the last six downhill races in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.
Additionally, two other Americans finished in the top 10. Bode Miller, a two-time winner of this race, was sixth. Racing in his first World Cup downhill, rookie Andrew Weibrecht started 53rd but wound up 10th.
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
After fleeing Sudan when civil war erupted, Al-Hilal captain Mohamed Abdelrahman and his teammates have defied the odds to reach the CAF Champions League quarter-finals. They are today to face title-holders Al-Ahly of Egypt in Cairo, with the return match in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, on Tuesday next week. Al-Hilal and biggest domestic rivals Al-Merrikh relocated to Mauritania after a power struggle broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary force. The civil war has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced more than 12 million people, according to the UN. The Democratic Republic of the Congo-born Al-Hilal
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Matvei Michkov did not score on Monday, but the Philadelphia rookie had a hand in both goals as hosts the Flyers earned a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Predators. Ryan Poehling and Jamie Drysdale got the goals for the Flyers (31-36-9, 71 points), who won their third straight. Michkov and Travis Konecny assisted on both. Ivan Fedotov stopped 28 shots to earn his first win since March 1, ending a personal six-game losing streak. Zachary L’Heureux got the lone goal for Nashville. Michael McCarron and Brady Skjei got the assists for the Predators (27-39-8, 62 points), who have just four goals in their
RSS