Kilde captures downhill for 2nd straight victory
» If there was any thought a knee injury might hold back Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, that’s been erased.
His speed has quickly returned.
The Norwegian standout captured a World Cup downhill race with an aggressive run Saturday for his second win in as many days.
It’s more proof the 2019-20 overall World Cup champion is returning to top form after tearing his ACL less than a year ago — and with the Winter Olympics in Beijing just two months away.
“I wanted to come back as fast as possible and I guess this is the result and I can’t be more happy,” Kilde said.
Starting 19th overall, Kilde finished the demanding Birds of Prey course in 1 minute, 39.63 seconds to edge Austrian racer Matthias Mayer by 0.66 seconds. Beat Feuz of Switzerland was third, while Italian racer Matteo Marsaglia turned in a surprise run from bib No. 28 to take fourth.
Kilde won the super-g Friday in just his third race back from a training crash last January in which he hurt his right knee. He said he received congratulations from his girlfriend and U.S. skiing star Mikaela Shiffrin, who’s competing in Lake Louise, Alberta, this weekend.
“She’s awesome,” Kilde said. “We’re good for each other.”
The top American finisher was Ryan Cochran-siegle with a sixth-place finish and 1.24 seconds behind Kilde’s winning time. He plans to glance at video of Kilde’s run.
“He’s just technically so sound,” Cochran-siegle said. “The only ‘weakness’ that he had was his knee injury and he’s clearly come back from that 100%. He’s skiing at a high level.”
Kilde, who put in the grueling rehab work to get back, said he watched what he ate, got a good night’s sleep and stayed away from alcohol.
“Give yourself a plan but don’t waste anything,” Kilde said. “That’s what I’ve had in mind and it’s been working pretty well.”
Part of Birds of Prey course now named for Ligety. Ted Ligety’s persona will remain on the vaunted Birds of Prey course permanently. The multiple Olympic and world champion Alpine skier was recognized before Saturday’s downhill competition with the unveiling of “Ligety’s Legacy,” getting his name on a part of the course to honor the man who was victorious five times at the World Cup event.
Ligety is second all-time behind Hermain Maier on the all-time Birds of Prey wins list. His likeness is now etched into the course alongside fellow American legends Daron Rahlves and Bode Miller, a worthy reward for the newly retired former Olympic and World champion.
Goggia claims women’s downhill. »LAKE LOUISE, ALBERTA» Sofia Goggia won a World Cup downhill by a wide margin for the second consecutive day Saturday, extending her streak in the discipline to six appearances in a row as she shapes up as a big favorite to defend her Olympic gold medal in Beijing in two months.
Goggia, a 29-year-old Italian, again was terrific in Lake Louise, covering the course in 1 minute, 48.42 seconds to become the first woman since Lindsey Vonn in 2009-10 to put together a run of a half-dozen triumphs in the downhill.
Goggia also became just the second active female ski racer with 10 career World Cup victories in the event.
Breezy Johnson of Jackson Hole, Wyo., was the runner-up, just like she was on Friday, this time trailing Goggia by 0.84 seconds. These are Johnson’s first two secondplace World Cup finishes.