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Men's Giant Slalom
Unlike his powerhouse "Herminator" image, Austrian superstar Hermann Maier skied with an unusually smooth style Sunday, winning him the opening giant slalom at Tignes. After two nearly perfect runs, he finished ahead of the world's best giant slalom racers.

	Hermann Maier, AUT

"I didn't attack as much as usual because the snow was quite different from one gate to the other," Maier said. "I guess it was a good tactic. The course was sometimes icy and then softer, so you needed to ski with much feeling."

Maier, the reigning giant slalom Olympic champion, beat Switzerland's Michael von Gruenigen by .75 of a second. Maier's teammate, Stephan Eberharter, tied for 3rd place with Norway's Kjetil Aamodt, 1.90 seconds behind the lead.

Maier started this season, his fourth on the World Cup circuit, in the same impressive way as last year by dominating the first competition and securing him his nineteenth career World Cup win. In the first run, he was half a second faster that von Gruenigen and 1.25 faster than Eberharter. At that point, Aamodt was in 7th place, 1.78 seconds behind the leader.

"I didn't attack as much as usual because the snow was quite different from one gate to the other. I guess it was a good tactic..." — Hermann Maier, AUT

Last year, Maier won in the first giant slalom in Soelden, Austria, but later seemed to lose his momentum in the North American competitions. He crashed in the giant slalom at Park City and was beaten in the super G at Aspen.

The double Olympic champion was surprised by his outstanding performance on the demanding course on the Grande Motte glacier, at an elevation of 3400 meters (11,154 feet).

"I didn't train so much GS in the past months so I didn't feel too sure before this race," Maier said. "Yet I was confident because I scored a couple of 3rd places here last time in 1997. I knew I was physically in good form. We have found some excellent racing skis in recent weeks, and I had no problem to master the difficulties of this demanding slope."

	The Herminator

"It's great to start the season," he continued. "I feel able to improve in the coming weeks. I have trained much downhill this summer since there are so many speed events this winter. I have also tested a lot of new skis to find the best performing equipment. I don't have so much experience in downhill, and I have to improve my technique to be able to fight for the overall World Cup victory. I think it can be a fun season — I feel relaxed as never before and ready to give my best. I'm looking forward to competing in the USA where I'm pretty popular. The races in Beaver Creek should be very exciting."

Lasse Kjus, the reigning giant slalom World Champion, skied out in the first run. Kjus, the defending overall World Cup champion, is far from his best form after losing several weeks of training last summer due to a knee injury.

Tignes didn't pan out well for last season's overall champions either; on Saturday, Austria's Alexandra Meissnitzer, the 1999 women's overall champion, also skied out in the first leg.

Von Gruenigan, despite losing a pole when he hooked a gate in the lower part of the second run, finished a strong second place. He has always skied well in Tignes. He has won two races here, and he finished second twice. He was not concerned finishing behind his Austrian arch-rival, since he feels able to improve his form in the coming weeks.

"I didn't ski so well this summer, so this result boosts my morale," said von Gruenigen, the defending giant slalom World Cup champion.

"I am happy to have decided to keep on racing. I really enjoy to compete against great skiers as Hermann who seems ready to win many races this winter. I like the way he can always take risks," he continued.

With a total of 16 victories in giant slalom, three GS World Cup titles and a gold medal in 1996, the Swiss von Gruenigen is the best giant slalom racer on the tour.

Kjetil Aamodt seemed as happy as his rivals while climbing on the podium after his fantastic second run. Aamodt, 1994 overall World Cup champion and 1993 giant slalom World Champion, was relieved by his promising result.

"Last winter, I had to wait until the second weekend in January to reach my first podium after having accumulated a series of 4th and 5th places," said Aamodt, the 28-year-old runner-up in the 1999 overall standings.

"The second run gave me great momentum because I was able to ski very aggressively. I was very consistent last winter, but I didn't win a single race — only two combineds. I have to take more risks in future to win again. I am aiming for another overall World Cup title, but I have no chance to clinch it without many victories. Maybe I should focus on two or three specialties this season."

Aamodt won his last giant slalom at Adelboden in January 1997.

Two other Austrians, Benjamin Raich and Christian Mayer, came in 4th and 5th place.

America's Bode Miller reached a far 19th place. Miller, a slalom specialist from Franconia, NH, clocked the 9th fastest time in the first leg, but a mistake in the lower part of the second run cost him a spot in the top-10. Miller couldn't mask his disappointment after his second run.

"I felt great today and I was aiming for a top-5 position after my excellent first run," Miller said. "We have trained hard and I believe in my chances to reach the podium in giant slalom as well as in slalom. I'm happy because I'm able to take risks. It's the only way to progress but it's easy to make mistakes when you ski at your limits."

American Dane Spencer came in 38th in the first run and didn't qualify, nor did Chad Fleischer, 40th; Thomas Vonn, 43rd; and Casey Puckett, 46th.

The next World Cup races take place in three weeks in Park City, Utah.

— Patrick Lang, MountainZone.com World Cup Correspondent