Marcel Hirscher moves into 3rd on all-time World Cup wins list
Giant slalom victory the 51st of Austrian skier's career
Marcel Hirscher edged Henrik Kristoffersen for victory yet again in a World Cup giant slalom on Saturday, and rose to third on the men's all-time wins list.
Taking a wild ride down the steep final slope, first-run leader Hirscher finished 0.17 seconds ahead of his Norwegian rival for his third GS win this season.
Kristoffersen has been runner-up each time in a rivalry that shapes as one of Alpine skiing's best heading into the Pyeongchang Olympics next month.
Hirscher hung on for the win despite losing speed, and most of his half-second lead, taking a wide line cresting the slope down to the finish area.
He went wide again a few gates from the end and, on crossing the finish line, fell to the snow as if in disbelief that he 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.
Calgary resident Trevor Philp was the only Canadian to advance to the final run and finished 4.13 seconds back in 23rd place.
Kristoffersen smiled wryly for the cameras on being runner-up for the sixth time this season — four of them behind his big rival. He has yet to win and is currently second to Hirscher in three different season-long standings.
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-placed Kristoffersen.
Climbing the ranks
With his 51st career World Cup win, the 28-year-old Austrian broke a tie with Alberto Tomba that lasted only two days. Hirscher won a slalom Thursday at Zagreb, Croatia.
Hirscher now trails only his fellow Austrian Hermann Maier (54) and Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark (86) on the wins list 51 years after the World Cup began.
A sixth career win at Adelboden also lifted Hirscher over Stenmark's five on the Chuenisbaergli hill. However, when Stenmark raced in the 1970s and '80s, the course staged only a giant slalom.
Hirscher and Kristoffersen will start favourites in slalom on Sunday.