Bassino leads Brignone for Italian 1-2 in skiing season-opener
SOELDEN, AUSTRIA » Clenching her first, Marta Bassino screamed for joy and shouted “Si!” after crossing the finish line.
Almost a year after her first career win, she led Federica Brignone for an Italian 1-2 finish in the season-opening women’s World Cup giant slalom Saturday.
Bassino held on to her first-run lead to beat her teammate and defending overall World Cup champion by 0.14 seconds.
“I am really proud of today and really happy about this start of the season. It’s really perfect,” Bassino said.
The result was a copy of her maiden triumph in the GS in Killington, Vermont, last season, when she also defeated Brignone.
“We are a perfect couple,” Bassino said. “We have a great team. We worked very well this summer and I think this is the result.”
Almeida keeps adding to Giro lead
VALDOBBIADENE, ITALY » First Grand Tour. First lengthy time trial. And first overall.
Portuguese rider João Almeida just keeps checking off new personal bests, the latest by increasing his grip on the pink jersey in the hilly 14th-stage time trial of the Giro d’Italia.
Almeida, 22, has held the lead since a strong effort up Mount Etna in Stage 3.
“We learn every day,” Almeida said. “We’ll see how I react for the last week.”
Only seven stages remain before the race ends in Milan next weekend with another individual time trial — although the final week is filled with grueling climbs through northern Italy and Almeida himself has acknowledged that he has no idea how his body will react.
Moffitt wins wild Truck race
KANSAS CITY, KAN. »
Brett Moffitt wasn’t about to finish second again — not with a spot in the NASCAR Truck Series finale on the line.
So when Zane Smith tried to pass him with three laps to go, Moffitt moved down ever so slightly and sent his teammate into a spin along the backstretch. Then, the 28-year-old from Iowa held off a field full of playoff contenders, winning a two-lap shootout to the checkered flag at Kansas Speedway on Saturday.
Moffitt got a big push from another teammate, Sheldon Creed, on the final restart and then beat the winner of the first two stages to the finish line. It was Moffitt’s first win of the season after four runner-up finishes.
Zverev to play in Cologne final
COLOGNE, GERMANY » Alexander Zverev moved one win from a third title in his native Germany and will play Felix Auger-Aliassime in the final of the Cologne Indoors tournament.
Top-seeded Zverev defeated Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-5, 7-6 (3) in the semifinals.
Auger-Aliassime, 20,. also beat a Spanish opponent, second-seeded Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-3, 1-6, 6-3. The Canadian will be going for his first title in Sunday’s final — his sixth.
Rublev, Coric advance to final
ST.PETERSBURG,RUSSIA» Andrey Rublev and Borna Coric overcame Canadian opposition to reach the final of the St. Petersburg Open.
Third-seeded Rublev rallied to beat second-seeded Denis Shapovalov 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, and Coric also recovered in the semifinals to beat Milos Raonic 1-6, 6-1, 6-4.
Rublev saved five of six break points to rally from a set down for the second time this week after also trailing Ugo Humbert by a set in the second round.