{"id":59001,"date":"2018-02-16T07:52:01","date_gmt":"2018-02-16T07:52:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=59001"},"modified":"2018-02-16T07:52:01","modified_gmt":"2018-02-16T07:52:01","slug":"alpine-skiing-swede-hansdotter-wins-gold-no-medal-for-shiffrin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/sports\/alpine-skiing-swede-hansdotter-wins-gold-no-medal-for-shiffrin.html","title":{"rendered":"Alpine skiing: Swede Hansdotter wins gold, no medal for Shiffrin"},"content":{"rendered":"

Alpine skiing: Swede Hansdotter wins gold, no medal for Shiffrin<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Sweden\u2019s Frida Hansdotter won gold in the women\u2019s slalom as defending champion and clear favorite Mikaela Shiffrin of the United States failed to even reach the podium.<\/span><\/p>\n

Shiffrin has utterly dominated women\u2019s slalom, winning four of the last five World Cup season titles and the last three World Championships, as well as the gold in Sochi four years ago.<\/span><\/p>\n

But her performance was well below her usual standards and she said she had been unwell prior to her first run.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hansdotter\u2019s combined time from the two legs was one minute 38.63 leaving her just 0.05 seconds ahead of Switzerland\u2019s Wendy Holdener, who had led after a brilliant first leg run.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI knew it would be tough, Mikaela has been so strong this season. I was maybe a little bit surprised. It\u2019s nice for me to beat her for once because she has been beating me so many times,\u201d said Hansdotter.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s completely magic. I\u2019ve battled so hard for this medal. Winning Olympic gold is a dream\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

Austria\u2019s Katharina Gallhuber, who has never reached the podium in a World Cup race and is ranked 10th in slalom in the World Cup, was in the bronze medal position with Shiffrin fourth, 0.40 behind Hansdotter.<\/span><\/p>\n

Shiffrin had been aiming to become the first skier to defend an Olympic slalom title but she looked flat in her first leg and needing to make up time in her second run, she was actually slower.<\/span><\/p>\n

After the race the 22-year-old stepped back from her suggestion that she was struggling with her health and said she had no excuses.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe only one who can beat myself in slalom is me and I beat myself in the wrong way today,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a really big bummer but I will learn. Coming here and skiing the way that I did, really conservative, was a huge, huge disappointment. It\u2019s hard to explain how that feels but that\u2019s how life goes.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Hansdotter, a 32-year-old veteran of the World Cup circuit, will become the second Swedish woman to win Olympic slalom following Anja Paerson in Turin in 2006.<\/span><\/p>\n

She was the season World Cup winner in slalom in 2006 and had won slalom silver in the 2015 World Championships in Beaver Creek.<\/span><\/p>\n

Holdener wasn\u2019t able to capitalize fully on beautiful first run of 48.89 seconds, as the first skier of the day, but she was delighted to have a silver medal.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMy legs weren\u2019t that fast on the second run, I felt the pressure so I fought to the end and I\u2019m really happy to get the second place,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

The biggest upset was 20-year-old outsider Gallhuber finishing ahead of Shiffrin into bronze after a near perfect second run of 48.83 — the fastest leg of the day.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAfter the first run I was a bit behind so I knew I needed a really good second run and I had to all in. Yeah, unbelievable that it happened. I am speechless and I can\u2019t believe it,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:-\u00a0https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-olympics-2018-alps-w-sl\/alpine-skiing-swede-hansdotter-wins-gold-no-medal-for-shiffrin-idUSKCN1G006V<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t <\/div><\/div>\n\t\t