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Bormio, Italy
March 18, 2000
Women's Giant Slalom
The Austrians continue to dominate the World Cup Finals at Bormio. After the victory of Renate Goetschl in the Overall and the super G World Cups,
Michaela Dorfmeister, second in the giant slalom won by her teammate Brigitte Obermoser, has concluded her season brilliantly with the victory in this giant slalom World Cup.
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 Dorfmeister |
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Sonja Nef, the last rival of Dorfmeister for the GS Cup, only came in 7th after having clocked the third best time in the morning, just 1/100 of a second behind Dorfmeister.
Nef lost the title by 82 points, but with three wins, the Swiss has nevertheless had an outstanding season.
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| "It's quite unexpected, too, because I didn't feel I could fight at the level of the favorites on this course..." — Brigitte Obermoser (AUS) |
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Martina Ertl was 4th, ahead of Austria's veteran Anita Wachter, the fastest in the last run. While Spain's Maria Rienda Contreras reached an excellent 8th place, Canadian Allison Forsyth, who led the first run at Sestriere last week, only finished 12th and missed, by two points, her goal to reach 400 World Cup points. Forsyth will not be allowed to compete in the slalom on Sunday.
The US's Kristina Koznick was a far 12th while her teammate Sarah Schlepper skied out in the first run.
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 Obermoser in action |
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"That's a great victory, I can't believe this," said Obermoser after the competition. "It's quite unexpected, too, because I didn't feel I could fight at the level of the favorites on this course.
"I was already very happy with my super G result and I had nothing to lose in that race. I could take a lot of risks," Obermoser added.
With her strong 2nd place, Michaela Dorfmeister, who won four giant slaloms this season, was assured the first major title of her career after collecting several silver and bronze medals in the Olympics and World Championships.
Dorfmeister was glad to share this moment of great emotion with her best friend on the tour (both were hugging each other in the finish area after the arrival of the winner.)
"I had to be aggressive in both runs today because Sonja is tough racer and I didn't want to gamble," Dorfmeister said. "After finishing third at Sestriere, thanks to that excellent second run, I knew that I had found back my old form and this gave me great confidence for these Finals.
"It was good to finish 1/100 ahead of Sonja in the first run, it proved to her and to myself that I was ready to fight hard to win that Cup. I also knew that I could count on the support of my friend Brigitte who had nothing to lose here.
Before the second run, we rode up together on the chairlift and she talked about the race. I told her that she should win the competition and that I would get the Cup with a second place. This is exactly what happened afterwards. It's quite amazing! I'm really happy that we celebrate together such a great day."
"It's not easy to be in the lead in the Overall World Cup during several weeks with all the people always asking the same questions about my goals. But it was a great experience and I will come back next season with a stronger mental attitude. I know now I can aim for it in future."
On Sunday, the last race of the season, the slalom, will take place on the lower part of the Stelvio course. Slovenia's Spela Pretnar, a winner here in 1995 in giant slalom, will do her best to defend her 35-point lead over France's Christel Saioni, who will wear bib #1.
No Slovenian woman ever has won a Crystal Globe. A four-time winner this year, Pretnar has the guts to reach this fantastic goal. Among the other favorites for the race, Swede Anja Paerson and American Kristina Koznick, who won the last race in Sestriere.
— Patrick Lang, MountainZone.com European Correspondent