Vonn 6th in Ofterschwang GS
OFTERSCHWANG, Germany (Jan. 26) - Lindsey Vonn (Vail, CO) had the fourth-fastest second run Saturday to produce her best World Cup giant slalom result, finishing sixth. Julia Mancuso (Olympic Valley, CA) was 11th while Italy's Denise Karbon, skiing with a broken hand, had the fastest second run and won in 2:22.26.
"Lindsey won the bottom split and did a great job on that final run," Coach Chris Knight said. "She's been working it out. GS was her weakest event but she's been making steady progress. She stands in a little better position on her skis and gets more power out of [her stance] now."
Vonn's total time was 2:22.84 and Mancuso finished in 2:23.32. No other U.S. racer qualified for a second run.
Karbon, who won the season's first four giant slaloms, broke her hand Wednesday in training for the sixth GS. She was ninth on the first run behind World Cup overall leader Nicole Hosp of Austria. Hosp finished second in 2:22.34. After 22 races, Hosp leads with 839 points to 773 for Vonn with Germany's Maria Riesch third (713) and Mancuso fourth (703).
"Jules had a couple of mistakes on the top. Her timing was a little off and she was a little late with her pressure on her skis. She'll pick that up again with a little more training," Knight said.
Jessica Kelley (Starksboro, VT) just missed qualifying for a second run, finishing 32nd in the morning. "She's been so close so many times. She can ski at this level but maybe she shows a little too much respect for the hill," the coach said. "If she'd trust herself, she could be breaking into the top 30 regularly."
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Vonn 6th in Ofterschwang GS
