First Men's Downhill
Italy's Kristian Ghedina enjoyed one of his greatest days as a ski racer during the third downhill of the season on his beloved "Saslong" course in Val Gardena. This is a very meaningful third win on this classic course for the 30-year-old leader of the Italian Ski Team, or "Squadra Azzurra."

	The Winners

Despite a major mistake in the treacherous "Ciaslat" section — a series of icy turns before the long final "schuss" leading to the finish area — he was able to beat Austrian Josef Strobl by an amazing margin of 1.35 seconds. Canada's Ed Podivinsky achieved a superb comeback, taking 3rd place in front of three other Austrians — including Hermann Maier, who "only" placed 6th.

Another Canadian, Darin McBeath, the shooting star from Calgary, finished 9th and two other Canadians finished among the top-20. Two US skiers, Chris Puckett and Daron Rahlves, also scored points. US skier Chad Fleischer did not compete, nor did Norway's Lasse Kjus, a winner here last year. Kjus is suffering from the flu and Fleischer has an injured left shoulder.

"I don't care so much about statistics, but it means something to me to know that I have established a new record today in winning by more than a full second...." — Kristian Ghedina

Kristian Ghedina was pretty happy and proud of himself after winning this, the 11th World Cup race of his career. The champion from nearby Cortina d'Ampezzo is always very motivated when skiing in his country and he feels at home on the demanding "Saslong" course.

"It's here that I started in my first major downhill and I came in 3rd in December of 1989 when I entered my first World Cup race. I was only 20 that year and it's great to have celebrated this anniversary with this fantastic win. I don't care so much about statistics, but it means something to me to know that I have established a new record today in winning by more than a full second."

In the past, only Austria's superstar Franz Klammer, a four-time winner here from 1975 to 1982 and the legendary Olympic Champion of 1976, has been as consistent here as Ghedina, who also won this race in 1996 and 1998. "I was not so sure about my chances to win again this year because I skied so well in training and I was not sure I'd be able to remain on the same level. But, in fact, I even skied better today. I never thought that I would win this race after that bad mistake in those tricky turns. I'm really surprised."

A spectacular athlete who likes to push his limits when skiing or driving race cars, Ghedina has already won some of the most prestigious downhill races, such as Wengen, Kitzbuhel and Beaver Creek, as well as some silver and bronze medals in past World Championships. He is still chasing the world title but doesn't feel impatient.

"Ski racing is so fascinating that I don't need to win all the time to remain motivated," he said. "I think I will compete until the 2006 Olympics in Turin — I will only be 36 then."

"I struggled a little last season and I was out of gas during the fall but my 3rd place in Beaver Creek in November was a big boost for my morale. I felt that I had a chance to beat those Austrians on some slopes where you have to be a complete skier — a good glider on the flats and a fine technician in the turns. I feel mentally much stronger now, also more relaxed. I think I'm able to put aside the negative pressure and the bad thoughts. I became much more positive which allows me to remain focused several days in a row. This was not the case in past winters," said Ghedina.

"I look at it as an exciting challenge to beat the Austrians — and I will do my best to beat them again on Saturday. I have never won a double downhill — it's really hard."

Ironically, no major Italian TV station broadcasted the race live from Val Gardena. Since the departure of Alberto Tomba and Deborah Compagnoni, the Italian media are less interested in skiing. But Italians Ghedina and Isolde Kostner, who won the women's downhill in St. Moritz today, have already won four races this season.

Josef Strobl, 3rd in a super G in Lake Louise, confirmed his improving form with this excellent 2nd place — quite a task in this strong Austrian team. Three Austrians finished within 6/100 of a second behind the podium. Hermann Maier was disappointed to miss another podium by only a few fractions of a second. "I didn't expect too much to win but I felt able to go for the podium as I did last year," said the Overall leader. "I made a huge mistake at the last jump and I must have lost two or three tenths of a second there," he added. "It's too bad because I had a good run in the upper part of the course. My skis were maybe a little too aggressive, but I feel able to improve on Saturday."

	Ed Podivinsky

But the happiest man on the podium was certainly Canada's Ed Podivinsky who beat his bad luck today. A year ago, he suffered a tough crash here and tore some knee ligaments. He almost decided to give up racing, but is pleased to have made the right decision.

"I'm so happy, this means so much to me," he said during the race. "I ended my season here last year and it's fantastic to come back here with such a result. I'm very excited, it's great for me.

"The course was faster and more challenging than in training and this is good for me. The "Ciaslat" section of the course was so tough that you had to be very aggressive to have a chance to make up some time there. It was a go-for-it or crash situation but it turned out fine for me this time. You have to take those kinds of chances on race day if you want to succeed," said Podivinsky.

The Austrians, who have won so often here in the last 25 years, should fight back on Saturday's race. Hermann Maier and Hannes Trinkl, who almost crashed in the last section today, know that they can ski better on this course. More dramatic competitions are expected tomorrow — but this time Italian TV will show it live!

— Patrick Lang, MountainZone.com World Cup Correspondent