Kilde dominates field in Saslong downhill

Aleksander Aamodt Kilde picked up his third career victory and kept the Norwegian dominance of the Saslong in tact after winning today’s downhill in Val Gardena/Groeden (ITA).

Wearing bib 5, Kilde laid down a blistering run, that no other racer could come close to. Finishing in second place was Austrian Max Franz, a healthy 0.86 behind, while Beat Feuz (SUI) finished in third place 0.92 seconds off the mark.

It was a mixed day of emotions for Feuz, who watched as his teammate Marc Gisin suffered a serious crash and had to be evacuated by helicopter to the hospital in Bolzano. Further details are not yet available.

Aksel Lund Svindal, who won yesterday’s super-G came down as the next racer following the crash and after the long delay finished a respectable seventh place.

Norway has dominated the Saslong race weekend  in recent years as the Attacking Vikings have earned seven victories in the last 10 races dating back to 2014 picking up a total of 15 podiums during that time, including this weekend’s victories in the downhill and super-Gs.

Also noteworthy was the strong performance of the America team, which earned fourth, fifth and sixth place thanks to the trio of Bryce Bennett, Steve Nyman and Travis Ganong. The Americans had been strong in training all week and while they missed the podium, it was the strongest U.S. speed team performance of the season.

The Audi FIS World Cup tour springs right back into action as the technical racers take to the slopes in nearby Alta Badia for a giant slalom and parallel event tomorrow and Monday.

Results are available here: Val Gardena DH

Quotes from the Top 3 are available here: Soundcloud