ALPINE SKI. The World Ski Championships downhill was a tough day, with difficult weather conditons from early morning on. But in the end, Kjetil Jansrud took his chance and won his firat World Champion title. Teammate Aksel Lund Svindal and Austria's Vincent Kriechmayr round out the podium. Congratulations to the deserving athletes.

The downhill season wasn't going so well for Kjetil Jansrud. So far, he didn't score a single podium placement and couldn't find the speed he had last season when he claimed an Olympic medal. But today, despite the fact that he had surgery on his hand two weeks ago, he became a World Champion for the first time in his career. With five Olympic medals, including one gold, and three World Championships medals, now including a gold as well under his belt, Jansrud is confirming that he is ready to take over the lead of the Norwegian speed team.

Aksel Lund Svindal had announced it. The World Ski Championships downhill would be the last race in his career. And the storyline became just perfect with the living legend taking the Silver medal, only +0.02 behind his teammate. 16 years at the highest level, where he collected 11 globes (including two Overalls), 36 victories and 80 podiums on the World Cup, as well as 4 Olympic medals (including two gold) and not less than nine World Championship medals (including five gold), will mark the highlights of his career. But Svindal is not only a living legend of alpine skiing, he will especially be missed as a genuine person and a great sportsman.

In third place, Austria’s Vincent Kriechmayr claims his second World Championships medal, after the Silver medal in the super-g. After winning both races at the World Cup Finals in Åre last winter, he confirmed that this snow and this hill fit his skills and managed to walk away with two medals around his neck. Kriechmayr was known as a very talented skier and it was just a matter of time to see him at the very top of the rankings. And he is now having the best season of his life, leading the super-g standings, sitting in 4th in the downhill standings, and claiming his two first medals at a big event.

The men’s race program at the World Ski Championships Åre 2019 will go on with the Alpine Combined on Monday.

FIS alpine
09 Feb 2019

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