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World Cup roundup: Herminator wins super G again at Kitzbuehel

The Associated Press

KITZBUEHEL, Austria – Hermann Maier got a much-needed boost before next month’s Olympics.The two-time Olympic champion won a super-G on the famed Hahnenkamm course Friday, defending his title from last year and getting his second victory of the season.”This course was custom-made for me,” Maier said. “There was a lot of snow in the last two days and it was hard for the skiers with high numbers, but I found the right balance between smooth and aggressive skiing.”That was the key to winning today’s race.”Reigning World Cup champion Bode Miller flew off course early – another in a series of poor results for the U.S. maverick.Fellow American Daron Rahlves was sixth. He had a 0.12-second lead near the top but lost precious time in the later sections.”It’s OK, it’s acceptable,” Rahlves said.Maier, the 29th skier out of the hut, started aggressively on a sun-drenched course that was quickly deteriorating. He won in 1 minute, 22.97 seconds.Peter Fill of Italy finished 0.05 seconds behind for second and his best career result. Austria’s Hannes Reichelt was third, 0.28 seconds behind.The victory was Maier’s fifth super-G title at Kitzbuehel, bringing his total at the most prestigious stop on the men’s World Cup circuit to six. H also won a downhill in 2001.”I like this hill. This is a very special hill for me,” Maier said. “Every part, I had good times and the turn in the end is much like a downhill. I think I reached 80 mph.”The win gave the 33-year-old Maier confidence going into the Turin Games.Miller, the reigning overall and super-G champion, went off course on a tricky turn in the top section and was forced to give up on a track that favored his risky style with no jumps until the end.He also skied out at the last race, a super-combi in Wengen, Switzerland.Dorfmeister posts second super-G victory of seasonST. MORITZ, Switzerland – Michaela Dorfmeister overcame quite a bit to win Friday’s women’s World Cup super-G.There was a tricky course. Then, overcrowding at inspection time. And finally there was the pressure on the reigning super-G World Cup champion.The day featured a whopping 25 DNFs as many of the sport’s top skiers struggled with a difficult course that included several tight blind turns.Americans Lindsey Kildow and Julia Mancuso both went out on the same turn after the second split. Both women took a left turn too wide on a steep pitch. Mancuso was leading at the time, while Kildow was only slightly off the pace.Libby Ludlow led the Americans in 12th.Denver’s Roark wins women’s World Cup freestyle eventWILMINGTON, N.Y. – Olympic-bound American Michelle Roark won her second straight World Cup freestyle contest Friday and Australian Dale Begg-Smith padded his World Cup lead as he won the men’s event at Whiteface Mountain.Roark, who won a week ago at Deer Valley in Utah, overpowered the field as she clicked on two jumps and received 25.99 points from the judges for the fifth win of her career.Vail’s Toby Dawson finished third on the men’s side to lead the Americans.


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