TNT Sports
Sara Hector returns to when after storming to victory in Jasna, Mikaela Shiffrin misses out on 95th World Cup win
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Published 20/01/2024 at 19:47 GMT
Sara Hector produced a dominant display when cruising to victory in Slovakia, finishing almost two seconds ahead of Mikaela Shiffrin to claim her first World Cup win of the season. The podium was completed by Shiffrin and New Zealander Alice Robinson, who was a further 2.71s adrift of Hector. However, the race will also be remembered for Petra Vlhova's nasty crash.
Watch highlights as Hector takes giant slalom win from Shiffrin in Jasna
Video credit: TNT Sports
Sara Hector bagged her first victory since the Winter Olympics by holding off Mikaela Shiffrin in the giant slalom in Jasna.
The Swede had finished on the podium just twice in the first races this season but returned to form on the Slovakian slope to win by a commanding 1.52 seconds from the American great.
There was disappointment for the locals, as home favourite Petra Vlhova crashed early on her first run. Vlhova, who won the giant slalom on home snow three years ago, slid into the safety netting and had to be taken away on a sled because of a knee injury.
New Zealand's Alice Robinson completed the podium, 2.71s off the pace, while Hector's win moves her fourth in the giant slalom standings, 113 points behind leader Lara Gut-Behrami.
Hector's dominance in the race was remarkable as she led the field by a full second after the first run, with Shiffrin (+1.00) and Robinson (+1.05s) the only two skiers within two-and-a-half seconds of her lead.
Incredibly, there was a 3.65 second gap between first and 10th place after the first run, which was bigger than the gap between first and 30th place in the previous six slalom races this season.
The top three were able to cement their podium places in the second run, and Hector reflected on a race in which everything clicked on the day.
"The snow was perfect, amazing race, I had so much fun skiing today," Hector said in quotes published by fis-ski.com.
"I feel like my setup is so good for ice, everything was working today."
In contrast, Shiffrin could not do enough to claim what would have been a 95th World Cup win, but still secured a 149th podium finish.
"I felt I skied the best I can possibly ski on the second run and I'm super happy with that," she said.
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