Italians Paris and Innerhofer finish 1-2 in Bormio downhill

Competing on home snow, Dominik Paris and Christof Innerhofer of Italy finished 1-2 Friday in the physically demanding World Cup downhill on the Stelvio course in Bormio, Italy.

The festivities for the host nation were interrupted when Slovenian skier Klemen Kosi was airlifted by helicopter to a local hospital after crashing.

Kosi lost control toward the end of the course and tumbled through two layers of safety netting before coming to a stop.

Injury details were not immediately available.

Paris trailed Innerhofer on the upper section of the icy course but was faster at the bottom and finished 0.36 seconds ahead of his teammate.

Beat Feuz, the Swiss racer who won the season-long World Cup downhill title last season, finished third, 0.52 behind.

Paris, who also won this race in 2012 and 2017, matched the record of three victories on the Stelvio held by Austrian greats Hermann Maier and Michael Walchhofer.

It was the 10th win of Paris' World Cup career and his 25th podium result.

Paris' speed was clocked at nearly 135 kph (84 mph) on the Stelvio's only straightaway. Otherwise, he was letting his massive thighs absorb the bumps and terrain on the course's constant turns.

"I wouldn't say it was a perfect race but in the second part I let the skis run and gave my all, especially on the bottom, using all of my strength," Paris said. "I always dream of winnning but especially when it's really challenging. Then it really means a lot to me."

Innerhofer has also had plenty of success on the Stelvio. He claimed the first of his six World Cup wins on this course in 2008 and was third in 2010.

Innerhofer put down the best early run with the No. 2 bib, despite pointing his ski tips a bit too high off the final jump.

Paris then came down five racers later and trailed Innerhofer at the first three checkpoints before gaining time back on the bottom.

While many skiers bent over in exhaustion at the finish, Paris began celebrating as soon as he crossed the line, pumping his fists and then raising his ski over his head once he came to a stop.

"Have you seen Dominik's quadriceps? They're 10 centimetres bigger than mine so I'm not surprised he wasn't as tired as I was," Innerhofer said.

Bryce Bennett of the United States finished fourth, 0.67 behind, to match his career-best result set in the Val Gardena downhill two weeks ago.