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Italian Moellg masters wind to become new Snow King

Xinhua, January 6, 2017 Adjust font size:

Heavy snow in the first run and strong wind in the second run couldn't stop 34-year-old Italian skier Manfred Moellg on the way to his third career win but first after eight years of waiting when he put the best time at World Cup slalom race in Zagreb.

"It's incredible to stand here on the first place with Felix (Neurether) and Henrik (Kristoffersen) and to win in these tough conditions. I am very happy about this win in Zagreb. It's special for me," the Italian said after he won at the Sljeme Mountain and the winner's check of 42.000 Euros.

Moellg used all of his experience to master the difficult conditions and beat the rest of the field that included two red hot favorites and the best slalom racers in the recent years.

Five times overall World Cup winner Hirscher was aiming for his fourth win in a row on the Red Slope but managed only sixth in the end. Kristoffersen managed to come in third and make his best result and first podium in Zagreb being 0.77 seconds slower than the Italian winner.

The best German skier 32-year-old Felix Neureuther took the second place for the third time at Sljeme, equaling the feat of the local hero 37-year-old Ivica Kostelic, who is struggling for years with injuries and was one of the slowest racers on the slope. Still, the former World Cup winner was greeted as a champion in the finish area by the thousands of Croatian supporters.

"I don't know if this was my last race at Sljeme but I just wanted to thank the people for their support during all these years. They were always had give me motivation and they were always cheering for every racer no matter from which country they were coming. I always felt like one of them," Kostelic said about his farewell speech he made for the public from the finish area.

After four slalom races in this World Cup season Austrian Hirscher is still on top of the rankings with 300 points, followed by Norwegian Kristoffersen with 260 and Moellg with 246.

Next slalom race will be held on Sunday in Adelboden, Switzerland. Endit