Val Gardena Hosts First European Speed Races of FIS Season

(ATR) Austrian veteran Michael Walchhofer and Switzerland’s Silvan Zurbriggen were victorious in Val Gardena, Italy this past weekend at the first European speed races of the 2010-11 International Ski Federation (FIS) Alpine World Cup season.

Ted Ligety won a giant slalom on Sunday in nearby Alta Badia. It was the American’s third victory over three consecutive weekends.

Walchhofer and Zurbriggen earned $26,000 for their wins, while Ligety took home 41,000.

The men’s Austrian ski team, which failed to earn any medals at the Vancouver Olympics, performed admirably in Val Gardena. In Friday’s super-G, they placed five racers in the top ten while in Saturday’s downhill, with three skiers among the first five positions.

Three racers among the top seed of 30 suffered crashes in Saturday’s downhill on the 2.1-mile Saslong piste. Frenchmen David Poisson and Johan Clarey, as well as American Marco Sullivan went down hard on a course that ran substantially faster and saw racers taking more air than in years previous.

Multiple competitors also experienced falls during training runs leading up to the race.

In the super-G, former World Cup overall leader Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway fell after clipping a control gate while in flight, sliding into the safety fences.

"I’m glad I’m ok," said Svindal. "I think I landed on my side and it’s a little sore and also my shin is pretty sore, but nothing too bad."

Despite the series of incidents, no serious injuries resulted on the track and in all instances the safety netting lining the sides of the course served its purpose.

"We will have falls and crashes, but our goal is that racers stand up and ski to the finish," said Guenter Hujara, FIS Chief Race Director for the men's World Cup. "Of course, we cannot guarantee it."

In attendance at the races were FIS President Gian Franco Kasper and Austrian ski racing icon Karl Schranz.

Tradition in Val Gardena

The Val Gardena valley, situated in Northern Italy’s Dolomites, just south of Austria, has been a regular stop on the World Cup circuit dating back to February 1969. The area also hosted the 1970 World Championships.

"There is a lot of passion touching all of the collaborators here, independently, on the slope, and in the press office," said Gernot Mussner, Val Gardena Chief of Press. "I always say we have passion for skiing like others play piano. They are passionate for music and we are passionate for these sporting events."

"It’sa small region, so skiing and ski racing has always played a major role," he said. "In the 50’s and 60’s, skiing gave the whole valley the opportunity to go further. Obviously, much has changed over the past 40 years, but the passion is still here."

This past October in Soelden, Austria, Mussner also was voted President of the International Association of Ski Journalists (AIJS).

"It’s very important that we give AIJS structure, a few rules and good collaboration with all involved in the sport such as the FIS partners and World Cup organizers that try to provide the best for the sport of skiing," said Mussner.

Veteran Photojournalist

For over 40 years, Italian photojournalist Armando Trovati has been a fixture at ski races in Val Gardena. He began his career covering both the first FIS WorldCup event in 1969 and then at the World Championships the following winter.

"In 1970, we had many problems just to send the pictures," said Trovati. "No Photoshop, no computers, no wi-fi. To send one black and white photo, we needed 25 minutes. It was terrible."

Trovati has also photographed events at every Winter Olympics from 1968 in Grenoble through 2006 in Torino. At the Italian Games, he served as Chief of Photography.

Along with Trovati, veteran ski journalists Patrick Lang and Gianni Bianco were also honored this past weekend for 40 years of service to the Val Gardena races.

City Event Comes to Munich

On January 2nd, World Cup points will be at stake at Munich’s Olympic Park, the setting for a unique city parallel slalom event. The tour’s top 16 male and female racers will compete on Olympic Mountain’s 656-feet slope navigating approximately 20 gates. The course finishes at the upper Olympic Lake.

"There has been great interest by the TV broadcasters and over 4000 tickets have already been sold," said Hujara. "The signs are very promising and we look forward to a great event with new elements such as special lighting and music, all designed to create a fantastic show with all the top stars of today's alpine ski racing.

Parallel slalom races were first held at Olympic Park in 1986 and 1987 with over 50,000 spectators in attendance. However, unlike the upcoming event, only women competed and World Cup points were not awarded.

Prior to the Munich city event, the men’s World Cup season continues with a downhill in Bormio, Italy on December 29.

With reporting from Brian Pinelli in Val Gardena.