(Jasna) In a race overshadowed by a nasty fall by crowd favorite Petra Vlhova, Olympic champion Sara Hector dominated a turbulent World Cup giant slalom on Saturday to record her first victory in almost two years.
Hector posted the best time in both runs to beat American Mikaela Shiffrin by 1.52 seconds. New Zealand’s Alice Robinson took third place, 2.71 seconds behind.
Quebecer Valérie Grenier took 11e step, at 6.05 seconds.
Skiing in front of 10,000 spectators near her hometown in the Tatras, Vlhova fell and slipped into the safety net at the start of her first descent. She was taken off the hill on a sled with an apparent knee injury.
PHOTO GIOVANNI MARIA PIZZATO, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Petra Vlhova was carried down a slide after her fall.
Vlhova’s team said she was taken to hospital for tests.
With his typical all-or-nothing style, Hector completed two almost flawless runs.
“It’s so incredible. The snow was perfect, it was an incredible race. This morning I was nervous, I’ve been thinking a lot lately, but today it was just crazy,” said the Swede.
Hector held a one-second lead over Shiffrin going into the final descent and she extended that lead through almost every intermediate run.
During an interview in the finish area after the race, Hector had a few words for the many Slovak supporters.
“It’s extraordinary that they stayed. I feel so bad for Petra, but you guys are a great crowd,” Hector insisted.
The slippery ice surface, combined with an unusual position of the gates on the Lukova 2 course, caused problems for several skiers during the first run.
Federica Brignone, who led the giant slalom standings, slipped and fell after the fourth gate. The Italian skier escaped unscathed.
Lara Gut-Behrami finished the race 4.49 seconds behind the winner, in sixth position. She climbed to the top of the discipline rankings, 25 points ahead of Brignone. Shiffrin is third, 56 points behind the Swiss.
Before the race, Vlhova and Brignone were ranked second and third respectively in the general classification, behind Shiffrin. The American is aiming to equal the women’s record of six World Cup titles.
“I think with this kind of surface you have to feel 100% sure,” Shiffrin observed, adding that even a small mistake wastes a lot of time.”
Shiffrin called the course on the first descent “very turning” and acknowledged Hector’s near-perfect run.
“She obviously did a spectacular job from the first run. I felt really good,” Shiffrin said.
A slalom will close the racing weekend in Slovakia on Sunday.