Hirscher wins giant slalom

ADELBODEN, SWITZERLAND» Weaving wildly down the steep final slope, Marcel Hirscher somehow found a way to outduel Henrik Kristoffersen yet again Saturday.

Hirscher’s thrilling victory was his third in a World Cup giant slalom this season, with his biggest rival runner-up each time. It also lifted the 28-year-old Austrian skier into third on the men’s World Cup all-time wins list.

The Hirscher-kristoffersen duel is one of alpine skiing’s best rivalries heading into South Korea’s Pyeongchang Winter Games next month, when both will seek a first Olympic gold medal.

Hirscher held on for the win Saturday by just 0.17 of a second despite losing speed, and most of his half-second lead, taking a wide line cresting the slope down to the finish.

He went wide again three gates from the end and, on crossing the finish line, fell to the snow as if in disbelief that he had won.

“Once again the luck was on my side,” Hirscher said in a finish-area interview broadcast to a crowd of 31,000 for the classic Swiss race.

Kristoffersen applauded his opponent and smiled wryly for the cameras on being runner-up for the sixth time in all races this season — four of them behind the same man. Kristoffersen has yet to win and currently is second to Hirscher in three different seasonlong standings.

“It was a real fight,” Kristoffersen said of Hirscher. “At the moment he is just better.”

Alexis Pinturault of France placed third Saturday, trailing 0.21 behind Hirscher, the six-time defending overall champion.

Hirscher extended his lead in the overall and giant slalom season standings from second-place Kristoffersen.