Slovenia (Agencies): Marcel Hirscher made certain of his eighth consecutive overall World Cup crown when he completed his second run in the slalom in Kranjska Gora in Slovenia on Sunday.
The Austrian began the day with a huge lead in the overall standings over Alexis Pinturault of France with five races to go. Hirscher was sixth after the first run. He stayed on his feet and recorded a time that ensured he would collect enough points to win his 20th crystal globe.
After all the competitors had finished, Hirscher was third behind winner Ramon Zenhaeusern of Switzerland and Norwegian Henrik Kristoffersen. Pinturault was seventh.
The result means Hirscher is 509 points ahead of Pinturault with four races left, one of them a downhill — a discipline in which neither skier has ever finished on a World Cup podium, and a maximum of 400 points to ski for.
The huge Zenhaeusern, who stands 2 metres (6’7″) tall, was only seventh after the first run but was fastest in the second to beat Kristoffersen by 1.15sec, for a first career slalom victory, although the Swiss skier has won two World Cup city knockout races.
Kristoffersen, who had won his last three races, seemed set to add to his streak when he led by almost half a second after the first run but was only 24th second time down.
In third, Hirscher took his 138th career podium despite a much less convincing performance than usual. But, in his competition with the legends of skiing history, the Austrian further increased his lead.
He already held the record for most overall titles. He now has two more than the second most successful skier in history, another Austrian Annemarie Moser-Proell, who won six large globes. The most successful man had been Marc Girardelli of Luxembourg, with five. American Lindsey Vonn and Austrian Hermann Maier both won four. With 68 race victories in the World Cup, Hirscher, who turned 30 a week ago, can aim for the record of 86 set by Sweden’s Ingemar Stenmark, if he is prepared to keep going long enough.
The Austrian suggested at the time that the World Championships in Are in Sweden in February, where he won a fifth individual title, would be his last, and is mulling retirement after this season. He has talked of the pressure from Austrian fans and the loneliness of the circuit. World Cup standings after Sunday’s slalom in Kranjska Gora:
Overall (after 34 of 38 races): 1. Marcel Hirscher (AUT) 1,508 pts, 2. Alexis Pinturault (FRA) 999, 3. Henrik Kristoffersen (NOR) 988, 4. Dominik Paris (ITA) 750, 5. Beat Feuz (SUI) 653, 6. Vincent Kriechmayr (AUT) 634, 7. Aleksander Aamodt Kilde (NOR) 587, 8. Mauro Caviezel (SUI) 566, 9. Marco Schwarz (AUT) 560, 10. Daniel Yule (SUI) 491 Slalom after (12 of 13 races): 1. Marcel Hirscher (AUT) 768 pts, 2. Daniel Yule (SUI) 491, 3=. Ramon Zenhaeusern (SUI) 471, 3=. Henrik Kristoffersen (NOR) 471, 5. Clement Noel (FRA) 451.
