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A18 SPORTS
Saturday 9 February 2019

Holdener retains Alpine combined title at skiing worlds

By STEVE DOUGLAS it back and stretched at
AP Sports Writer the line to win.
ARE, Sweden (AP) — Ev- The winner of the event is
erything fell into place for determined by adding the
Wendy Holdener. times from one high-speed
Her two biggest challeng- downhill run and one short-
ers — Mikaela Shiffrin and er slalom leg.
Michelle Gisin — weren’t Shiffrin, who won the super-
competing in the Alpine G, skipped the combined
combined at the skiing to save energy for the sla-
world championships. Then lom and giant slalom. She
the downhill portion of the would have been the over-
event was shortened be- whelming favorite. Gisin,
cause of poor visibility, giv- the Olympic combined
ing slalom specialists like champion, was ruled out
Holdener a crucial advan- after she hurt her knee in
tage. a World Cup super-G race
The Swiss racer just needed in Garmisch-Partenkirchen
to nail her two runs to suc- last month.
cessfully defend the world With seven skiers — includ-
title she won in St. Moritz in ing Lindsey Vonn — choos-
2017. She did exactly that, Wendy Holdener speeds down the course during the slalom portion of the women’s combined, at ing not to take part in the
but only just. the alpine ski World Championships in Are, Sweden, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. slalom leg, the field was re-
Fifth after the downhill por- Associated Press duced to 26 competitors.
tion, Holdener was tied slalom races without get- major championships. She skier Roni Remme went off It further damages an
with Petra Vlhova under ting a victory. is the fifth woman to win at No. 3 in the slalom and event that is already under
the floodlights after the “Finally I could put two back-to-back world titles in held the lead until Vlhova threat as the International
third checkpoint in the good runs together and the combined. — eighth after the downhill Ski Federation decides on
slalom leg. Holdener then bring home the victory,” Holdener was in a good — moved into first. the future of Alpine skiing’s
made up ground in the fi- she said. “It’s the right position after a clean run Holdener went two skiers original Olympic discipline,
nal stretch to edge Vlhova time.” Ragnhild Mowinckel in the downhill, with only later and started with an which was introduced at
by 0.03 seconds and retain of Norway was third, 0.45 Ramona Siebenhofer, Ilka advantage of 0.30 seconds the 1936 Winter Games.
what may prove to be the seconds behind Holdener. Stuhec and then Mowinck- over Vlhova. That was soon FIS could replace Alpine
last-ever combined title. Holdener, who also won el ahead of her. Corinne wiped out in a little over 36 combined with parallel sla-
For the 25-year-old Holden- the team event at last Suter was in fourth place seconds. But to the back- lom racing at future Olym-
er, the win was especially year’s Pyeongchang Olym- but decided to skip the sla- drop of cowbells and loud pics and world champion-
satisfying after achieving pics, has now earned gold lom. cheers by Swiss fans near ships. The men’s combined
20 podiums in World Cup medals at three straight Unheralded Canadian the finish, Holdener clawed is on Monday.q

Ski chief urged to quit over climate comment

By EDDIE PELLS sociated Press via email, FIS low-average snowfall lead
AP National Writer officials said they had no to “decreased value add-
DENVER (AP) — A group of further comment. ed” of more than $1 billion
winter-sports athletes and Protect Our Winters is a and 17,400 fewer jobs.
the world’s biggest snow- nonprofit formed in 2007 to “When we saw that, from
board maker want the combat climate change. our perspective, it was un-
president of the Interna- Several dozen athletes are acceptable to have any-
tional Ski Federation to re- part of the alliance, which one in a position of lead-
sign after he spoke of “so- also includes scientists and ership in the snow-sport
called climate change” business leaders. industry denying climate
and said he would rather In their open letter, which change,” POW executive
deal with dictators than ar- also included a link for peo- director Mario Molina told
gue with environmentalists. ple to add their name to AP.
The climate advocacy the call for Kasper’s resig- POW also decided to not
group Protect Our Winters nation, POW said the Tag- accept a $10,500 dona-
sent an open letter Friday In this Feb. 19, 2017, file photo, Gian Franco Kasper, president es-Anzeiger story “confirms tion it was set to receive
urging 75-year-old Gian- of the International Ski Federation, speaks during a press what insiders in FIS meet- Sunday from U.S. Ski and
Franco Kasper to step conference in St. Moritz, Switzerland. ings have told us for years: Snowboard through its vol-
aside. Associated Press that the leadership of the unteers, coaches, and ath-
In an interview with the Swiss environmentalists.” “To anyone shuddering to- organization is unwilling to letes.
newspaper Tages-Anzeiger He also referenced “so- ward me, I said: Welcome acknowledge scientific evi- “As a sign of respect for
, Kasper said “dictators can called” climate change, to the global warming,” dence that threatens the them and the action they
organize (big) events ... and when challenged Kasper told the newspaper. entire snow industry.” want to support, we are
without asking the people’s on that, responded “We Kasper subsequently apol- POW refers to studies that declining that donation
permission” and that “from have snow, sometimes very ogized for his comments, document the rapid de- and asking instead that
the business side, I say: I just much.” He pointed to frigid saying they were not cline of European glaciers Gian Franco Kasper be re-
want to go to dictatorships, temperatures at last year’s meant to be taken literally. , and to economic analysis moved from his position,”
I do not want to argue with Pyeongchang Olympics. When reached by The As- that shows seasons with be- the open letter said.q