Alice Robinson’s hopes of winning a historic Alpine World Cup giant slalom title were seriously dashed on Tuesday when she lost badly in the first leg of the World Cup finals, allowing Federica Brignone to take her place.
Robinson had a 20-point advantage over Brignone going into the season’s last race, and he had the opportunity to become the first person from New Zealand to win a World Cup crystal globe.
Six skiers out of the 28 that started failed to complete the first leg when she lost her balance on a deep bend near the bottom of the course after surviving an early wobble on the first run.
Credit: The Straits Times
Brignone was therefore in a position to add the giant slalom season title to the World Cup overall and downhill titles she had won on Saturday. She was second-fastest in the opening leg, 45 hundredths of a second behind Switzerland’s Lara Gut-Behrami.
To win the giant slalom season title, the 34-year-old Italian has to place 13th or higher.
First to ski, Brignone dominated the high part of the course before encountering difficulties on the lower part and struggling to complete the run.
After the first leg, Sara Hector, the Olympic champion from Sweden, was third, 68 hundredths of a second behind.
