ALPINE:

Raich wins super-combined, halts Janka's momentum

Dec. 11, 2009         ►Photo: The super-combi podium (Agence Zoom)

VAL D'ISERE, France — Benjamin Raich of Austria won a World Cup super-combined race, Bode Miller finished fifth and American teammate Ted Ligety skidded off the course on Friday.

The former overall World Cup champion had a combined time of 2 minutes, 7.71 seconds for the super-G and slalom runs. Raich was 0.89 seconds better than Marcel Hirscher, also of Austria.

Miller had a total time of 2:09.40. Ligety, the combined gold medallist at the 2006 Torino Olympics, was leading by more than a second when he went out.

"It was tough today," said Miller, a two-time overall World Cup champion. "I didn't feel very good, but it was important that I get some points because I hadn't scored a lot last year."

Raich, who was fourth after the super-G portion of the event, captured the 35th win of his career. He had the best slalom run, 49.94 seconds, on the treacherous Face de Bellevarde.

The 31-year-old Raich's win was a relief for Austria, which had been in the shadow of Alpine rival Switzerland since the start of the season.

"I knew I was close but it's a relief to have won," Raich said after posting his first World Cup victory of a season that includes the Vancouver Olympics in February.

"This is very important for the Austrian team," he added. "It was not easy for us to see the Swiss do so well. This is very good for our morale."

Many skiers struggled down a steep, icy piste on a gorgeous day, but not the technically gifted Raich.

"I'm happy because I skied really well in both the super-G and slalom," the former overall World Cup champion said. "This is a very demanding course but I like it. It's exciting because even if you make mistakes you can still recover, providing you reach the bottom."

All eyes were on the 23-year-old Janka after his Beaver Creek hat trick, and he suggested another win was within his reach when he managed the second-fastest time in the super-G despite not having fixed his boots properly.

"I did my job and gave my all," he said after an error-ridden slalom run that ended when he missed a gate halfway down.

"Things like that happen," added Janka, who burst into the limelight here with his first World Cup win in a giant slalom a year ago before becoming a world champion in the same event in February, also in Val d'Isere. "It's not the end of the world."

Janka struggled from the beginning with a big mistake on the upper part of the course before falling.

The 23-year-old Swiss skier won a super-combi, downhill and giant slalom last weekend in Beaver Creek, Colo. He missed a chance to become the first skier to claim four straight World Cup wins since Hermann Maier in 1998.

Janka's roommate, Sandro Viletta, who clocked the fastest time in the super-G leg, finished seventh overall, while teammate and super-G world champion Didier Cuche did not start the slalom because of a painful neck and back after a training crash.

Manfred Moelgg of Italy and Romed Baumann of Austria shared third place. World Cup leader Carlo Janka, who was second after the super-G, fell midway through the race.

Michael Janyk was the top Canadian, placing 35th. Ryan Semple did not complete his second run, while Louise-Pierre Helie ran only the morning super-G section.

Janyk ranked 58th after the super-G run and finished 35th after the slalom run with a time of 2:17.14. He finished with the 12th-fastest time for the slalom portion. Semple was the top Canadian in the super-G and finished in 44th place. He was not able to finish the second run. Helie finished the super G in 51st, but he did not start the slalom.

The men's World Cup event in Val d'Isère continues Saturday with the super-G. The women’s technical team will race a giant slalom in Are, Sweden.

The men's super-G race will be live on cbcsports.ca from 4:20-5:30 a.m. ET. It will be rebroadcast on the main network from 4:30-6 p.m. ET as well as on Sportsnet main network starting at 4:30 p.m. ET. The race is on Radio-Canada.ca at the same time and rebroadcast on Radio-Canada from 3-5 p.m. ET.  SRC

— The Canadian Press, Reuters and Alpine Canada contributed to this report

Val d'Isere men's World Cup super-combined results