World Cup season begins Oct. 27 in Austria.
October 15th, 2007
PARK CITY, Utah -- Olympic champions Ted Ligety (Park City, UT) and Julia Mancuso (Olympic Valley, CA) have had solid preseason training, but the return of other veteran World Cup racers has U.S. coaches optimistic for continued success this season.
A healthy return to racing from World Championships medalist Lindsey Vonn (formerly Kildow; Vail, CO) and fellow Olympians Caroline Lalive (Steamboat Springs, CO), Dane Spencer (Boise, ID) and Erik Schlopy (Park City, UT) is one major cause for smiles. So were the outstanding midwinter snow conditions for training in New Zealand and Chile.
The World Cup schedule begins Oct. 27-28 on the Rettenbach Glacier above Soelden, Austria.
"We've had great quality and quantity of training this summer and early fall," Alpine Director Jesse Hunt said. "Our programs are running smoothly and we're looking forward to the start of the 2008 season."
Mancuso hopes for successful encore
Mancuso, the Olympic giant slalom gold medalist from Torino, registered her first four World Cup victories last winter and finished third in the overall World Cup standings, the best performance by a U.S. woman since 1983. She was third overall, second in downhill and combined points, and fourth in giant slalom and super G. Mancuso also earned her third World Championships medal, capturing the silver in super combined at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in Sweden.
She came into the 2007 season with a minimum of preseason training because she was recovering from hip surgery. Her results gave her confidence, she said, and with another strong preseason training schedule she would be able to contend for the overall as well as one or more discipline titles in '08.
Olympic combined champion Ligety looks to continue expanding his four-event racing. He's expected to compete in all tech (i.e., slalom and GS) events and selected speed (i.e., downhill and super G) races. Steven Nyman (Orem, UT), who earned his first World Cup DH win last season, as well as two-time Olympians Marco Sullivan (Squaw Valley, CA) and Scott Macartney (Kirkland, WA) top the speed team. All-rounders T.J. Lanning (Park City, UT) and Jimmy Cochran (Keene, NH) add gate-running depth.
Midwinter conditions for Southern Hemisphere training camps bolstered the results for the tech and speed groups, Hunt said. "Hard snow and good weather were the norm for our camps, so they were extremely productive preparation periods. Athletes focused on their training but they also were able to test new equipment," he said.
Vonn, who was married in September to former racer Thomas Vonn, was in the running for the overall title until a knee injury suffered in slalom training at the championships sidelined her for the rest of the season. Missing the last month of the season, she finished sixth overall. Vonn finished third in both the downhill and super G standings.
Lalive is returning after shattering her left kneecap in a training crash in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, in January 2006, the same day she was named to her third Olympic Team. Spencer comes back from a NorAm racing crash in February 2006 in which he broke his back, fractured his pelvis and suffered multiple injuries. Schlopy, GS bronze medalist at the 2003 Worlds and a three-time Olympian, is rebounding from an injury to his left knee last December during a training crash in Italy.
"They've made great progress in returning and we're optimistic about how much they'll be able to compete when the season gets underway," Hunt said.
November training at Keystone and Copper Mountain is vital
Below the World Cup, Hunt said Europa Cup athletes "have committed themselves to the rigors of preparing for the competition. They're hungry and there's a sense of urgency at that level which we haven't experienced in recent years. They've been working hard on the hill and off to prepare themselves for the season."
The alpine squad will have final European training camps in Austria during October, then return to Colorado, as it's done in recent years, for final tune-ups. "We're looking forward to more great on-snow training this fall at Keystone and Copper Mountain," Hunt said. "That gives us a chance to make final adjustments before the season gets into full swing."
The World Cup will visit Beaver Creek, CO, for the Charles Schwab Birds of Prey men's races Nov. 29-Dec. 2 (super combined, downhill, super G and GS) while the Aspen Winternational will feature DH, super G and slalom Dec. 7-9.
Races will be televised on NBC and Versus network (all times ET):
Sunday, Dec. 2
2 p.m. on NBC - Charles Schwab Birds of Prey/Men's downhill from Beaver Creek, CO
5 p.m. on Versus - Charles Schwab Birds of Prey/A1 men's super G
6 p.m. on Versus - Charles Schwab Birds of Prey/Rauch super combined
Sunday, Dec. 9
2 p.m. on NBC - Aspen Winternational/Women's downhill from Aspen
5 p.m. on Versus - Charles Schwab Birds of Prey/Men's downhill
6 p.m. on Versus - Charles Schwab Birds of Prey/Rauch Men's GS
Sunday, Dec. 16
5 p.m. on Versus - Aspen Winternational/ Women's downhill
6 p.m. on Versus - Aspen Winternational/Rauch slalom
