ALPINE:

Lara Gut suspended for criticizing Swiss coach

Dec. 16, 2010 ― The Canadian Press

BERN, Switzerland — Ski racing star Lara Gut was suspended for two races by the Swiss ski federation Wednesday after she criticized head coach and former mentor Mauro Pini in interviews.

The 19-year-old Gut will miss World Cup giant slalom and slalom races Dec. 28-29 in Semmering, Austria.

"We don't accept that an athlete blames the head coach and expresses herself this way in public, and especially not in the media," said Dierk Biesel, the federation's sports director.

She also ignored verbal warnings to comply with guidelines on wearing official team clothes, the federation said.

Gut trains separately from the national team with a privately funded group of coaches and support staff, including her father Pauli.

In her comeback after missing the Olympic season due to a serious hip injury, Gut has struggled to find form. She has a best finish of 13th in a World Cup giant slalom last month at Aspen, Colo.

Gut made her reputation as a 17-year-old, winning silver medals in downhill and super-combined at the 2009 World Championships when Pini was her main coach.

Weeks later, Pini left Team Gut to spend last season working with the Swiss men's speed squad.

He helped Didier Defago win Olympic gold in downhill in the Vancouver Winter Games, and Didier Cuche won the World Cup downhill title. Swiss Ski then gave Pini control of the women's team.

Gut is scheduled to compete this weekend at Val d'Isere, France — scene of her worlds success — in super-G, downhill and super-combined. S-Magazine