After winning the giant slalom on Saturday by going all-out in his second run, Austria’s Marcel Hirscher returned to the Swiss slopes to see if he could go 2-for-2 in 2019 in Adelboden.
With wet snow falling, Hirscher was able to once again lay down an aggressive second run, this time in the slalom, to pick up his 67th career World Cup victory.
After his first run, Hirscher was positioned in third behind Norway’s Henrik Kristoffersen and his own countryman, Marco Schwarz.
Wearing bib #12, Schwarz produced a surge of speed at the bottom of his first run and overtook the lead by .34 hundredths of a second, good enough for the top spot heading into the break.
Despite unfavorable conditions, Hirscher turned in a masterful second run, crossing the finish line with a .50 hundredths of a second lead.
Kristoffersen was unable to match Hirscher’s pace in his second run. The Norwegian struggled to find a rhythm, and looked off balance at times, even putting his hands down on the snow to help him recover after scraping past a gate.
Schwarz also faltered in his second run, losing control and pulling up as the grandstand at the bottom of the course came into view.
Joining Hirscher on the podium was France’s Clement Noel in second, with his first podium finish of the season, and Kristoffersen who’s rough ride was good enough for third. Full results are here.
The men’s World Cup tour remains in the Swiss Alps this week as they travel to Wengen. On Friday, January 18 competition resumes with the Alpine combined, with the downhill scheduled for Saturday and the slalom for Sunday.
On the women’s tour, Lindsey Vonn is expected to make her return to the slopes for the U.S. as she attempts to close the gap between herself and all-time World Cup win list leader — for a man or woman — Sweden’s Ingemar Stenmark. Stenmark holds the record with 86 career victories, with Vonn right behind him at 82. Look for Vonn to compete in the women’s downhill on Friday, January 18 in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.
Watch World Cup Alpine skiing on Olympic Channel or stream it live on NBC Sports Gold.
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