Loïc Meillard offered Swiss skiing the first podium in its history in a World Cup slalom in Val d’Isère, men and women alike. The skier from Hérémence took 3rd place in a race won by Norwegian Lucas Braathen. Daniel Yule meanwhile obtained a conclusive 7th place.
Frustrated by his 10th place obtained the day before in giant when he was in 5th place after the initial heat, Loïc Meillard clenched his fist as soon as the finish line of this slalom was crossed. The Valaisan has this time perfectly negotiated the second course to gain 2 places and afford a 10th podium in the World Cup.
The double bronze medalist of the 2021 Worlds also benefited from the poor performance of Henrik Kristoffersen, 1st on the initial route and 6th in the end. But he can fully savor the 3rd top-3 of his career in the discipline, after Saalbach in December 2018 (2nd) and Garmisch last February (2nd).
Loïc Meillard conceded 0”98 to Lucas Braathen, the Austrian Manuel Feller ranking 2nd like the day before in giant (0”84 from the Norwegian). Eighth in the first heat, Daniel Yule for his part gained a rank thanks to a good second run, finishing 7th at 0”39 behind his teammate.
Zenhäuser 15e
Only one other Swiss managed to score points in this first slalom of the winter. Disappointing on the first track (24th), Ramon Zenhäusern raised his head to climb to 15th position. The Genevan Tanguy Nef, 20th in the initial heat, straddled shortly after the last intermediate score when the top-15 also seemed within reach. Luca Aerni and Marc Rochat have already experienced elimination in the first round.
ats/jfk