Men's Night Slalom
In the season’s first night slalom, Norway’s Finn "Finke" Christian Jagge celebrated a remarkable victory under the lights in Madonna di Campiglio, Italy. He also became the first man to win a World Cup slalom using the shortest racing skis (1.76m) produced by Salomon.

	Under the Lights

Jagge beat Austrian youngster Benjamin Raich by 23/100 of a second, while Thomas Stangassinger, who competed with a 10cm-longer, intermediate model, finished 3rd at 57/100 behind the winner.

Another Norwegian, the 1997 World Champion Tom Stiansen, reached a promising 4th place, his best result this year. Slovenia’s Jure Kosir, a winner here in December 1993, was 5th. Norwegians Kjetil Aamodt and Lasse Kjus also scored points in finishing 8th and 17th.

"Finke" the Fighter
"Finke" Jagge, 33, is a long-time World Cup fighter who has won a total of seven slaloms since entering the "White Circus" tour in 1986. Jagge, the 1992 Olympic Champion, last won a race here in December, 1991. He also conquered a dozen of 2nd and 3rd places on the most challenging terrains. However, he still has yet to achieve his wildest dream — to win the slalom World Cup title.

"I won a great battle of oldies this night..." — Finn Christian Jagge (NOR)

"I tested the new model last summer and I was not convinced that it was a better solution," Jagge explained. "In fact, most of the best specialists preferred to stay on the longer model. But I started to change my mind after the disappointing race at Beaver Creek. I only reached the 20th position there, and I was afraid that my career was going down.

	Jagge

"I got a new model of the short skis in the meantime, and I thought it would be smart to use them here," Jagge said with a grin. "I also saw that all the best women were using short skis and this convinced to take that risk. In fact, they were so fast in the first run that I had a hard time following them. With these skis, I feel able to keep on wining for a couple more years. It should be my last season and I wanted to leave the tour after winning once more. But now I feel able to aim for the slalom World Cup title. Maybe I will keep racing next winter with "big foot" skis."

Which skis to use?
The size of the skis was of course in the center of the discussions among the skiers after the competition. Many racers plan to test them more seriously in future and eventually to use them in racing next week in Slovenia’s Kranjska Gora or in January in Chamonix, France.

"I think that it’s possible to win with the medium or the shorter skis as long as you are in good shape," said Thomas Stangassiner. "I had a excellent first leg of the slalom, but then I made a bad mistake in the second run. I’m pleased to be again on the podium, but I’m also thinking about switching to a shorter model. So far I’m more than satisfied by my season-start. I’m consistent which is the most important to clinch the slalom World Cup title again."

Benjamin Raich, the Austrian "shooting star" from last winter, was also very happy. After a slow season-start in Tignes and Beaver Creek, the Tyrolian found back his best rhythm to reach his first podium since last January. Last winter, he was the only skier to win in both technical events.

"I trained well in the summer, and I felt ready for a strong start, but I didn’t ski as well as expected in the past month," Raich said. "I was very upset to ski out in the slalom at Beaver Creek after clocking the second best time in the first run."

"This winter is quite different than last one for me because I’m more known, and I feel that a lot of people want me to win many races. That’s fine because I also wish to be successful, but my first goal is to remain myself and to enjoy my career. The most important is to reach my potential — and to be also pleased with a 5th place," Raich added.

First Goal for Sacha Gros
Only one US skier was able to qualify for the second run. Sacha Gros finished in 16th place — his best result on the World Cup tour. His teammate Bode Miller crashed on his stomach at the end of the first run after clocking one of the fastest intermediate times. Drew Thorne Thomsen clocked the 43rd time in the first run.

"This is a breakthrough for my career..." — Sacha Gros (USA)

For Sacha Gros, who is racing in his second World Cup season, this race will remain an important moment in his young career. The 25-year-old racer from Vail, Colorado, who started 41st, scored his very first World Cup points with an impressive 17th place. Gros was very happy to have achieved this great performance.

"This is a breakthrough for my career," Gros said after the race. "From now on, it should be easier to go fast and qualify for the second runs. The World Cup tour is much more demanding than the Continental Cup competitions. There is more pressure on the World Cup circuit, and I was much more nervous. Now I feel able to handle those races with a more relaxed attitude.

"I was pretty down after the slalom at Beaver Creek. I wanted to do well in front of my home crowd and then I crashed out. I wanted to take a nice revenge today," Gros added. "The conditions were perfect here, the course was excellent and there was a nice atmosphere around the race. It’s fun to race in the night too. Scoring some World Cup points was my first goal now I’m chasing for more. I wish to improve my start-order and then I will aim for the podium."

There were no major changes in the Overall World Cup standings as Kjetil Aamodt and Lasse Kjus didn’t score heavy points. Hermann Maier, who didn’t race here, keeps a strong lead before the next men’s competitions, two downhills in Val Gardena on Friday and Saturday.

— Patrick Lang, MountainZone.com World Cup Correspondent