Hirscher takes on Pinturault in combined
Austrian Marcel Hirscher will face a stiff challenge from French rival Alexis Pinturault as he bids to defend his alpine combined title at the World Ski Championships in St Moritz today.
Hirscher, 27, has proved the real heavyweight of the World Cup in recent seasons and has in his sights a sixth successive overall winner’s crystal globe. The Austrian was a clear winner at the last worlds in Beaver Creek two years ago, and warmed up for today’s test with a 21st-place finish in last week’s super-G.
Suffering from ‘flu-like symptoms at the time, Hirscher was back on the slopes Saturday for training under the watchful eyes of his trainers, including his father.
Hirscher this season has four victories to his name, winning the Kitzbuehel and Levi slaloms and giant slaloms in Alta Badia and Garmisch. Pinturault, meanwhile, has racked up three giant slalom victories and also won the combined event in Santa Caterina in December ahead of Hirscher. In the Beaver Creek worlds, Pinturault disappointed, finishing only fifth, Hirscher topping the podium ahead of Norway’s Kjetil Jansrud, silver medallist in the super-G here, and American Ted Ligety, currently sidelined through injury. But “Pintu” was confident going into the St Moritz combined, with the opening downhill scheduled for 0900 GMT followed three hours later by a slalom. “I’ve won the combined crystal globe for the last two seasons,” said Pinturault. “I must try to do the same thing here.” The 25-year-old Frenchman, who will face off again against Hirscher in Friday’s giant slalom, said he felt “even more” favourite for the combined because “before there was a (Ivica) Kostelic or a Ligety, even if there’ll still be a Marcel!”
“A lot will come down to how you handle the downhill because it’s very testing with many hidden gates and jumps.”
Pinturault has proved his worth down the Corviglia slope, however, topping Friday’s final downhill training run, ahead of Italian Peter Fill but also in the absence of a raft of speed specialists who skipped the session. The second combined of the World Cup season, in Wengen last month, went to Swiss surprise Niels Hintermann ahead of France’s Maxence Muzaton. Also in the running for a podium place on Monday will be Norway’s Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, and a strong Swiss trio of Justin Murisier, Luca Aerni and Mauro Caviezel. “You just have to get used to the jumps and know what’s coming,” Kilde warned of the downhill slope. — AFP