Gold for Meillard

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Fabio Gstrein raced sensationally to Olympic silver.(Bild: Christof Birbaumer)

Medal number 14 for Austria's Olympic team! Fabio Gstrein raced to silver in the men's slalom on Monday. Gold went to Switzerland's Loic Meillard, with Norway's Henrik Kristoffersen completing the podium.

"Really cool – I'm really enjoying it," said Gstrein on ORF. The man from the Ötztal valley, who had previously stood on the World Cup podium twice in third place, has undergone an almost miraculous transformation in recent weeks. At the culmination of what had been a "brutally tough" start to the season for him, Gstrein also recalled that just over a month ago in Adelboden, he had not even qualified for the second run. It was only in Kitzbühel that he shook off his slump in form and was able to proudly say on Monday: "I've blossomed."

The result:

Fabio's second cousin Bernhard Gstrein won Olympic silver in the combined event in 1988. Meillard is only the second Olympic slalom champion for Switzerland after Edi Reinalter (1948 in St. Moritz). "Fabio was fast, I heard at the start. It was then 'all or nothing', no question. It's just incredible that it worked out," said Meillard. He had already won silver in the team combined with Marco Odermatt and bronze in the giant slalom. Swiss athletes came out on top in four of the five men's races. Only Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, competing for Brazil, prevented a Swiss sweep in the men's alpine events with his victory in the giant slalom.

Fabio Gstrein, Loic Meillard, and Henrik Kristoffersen (from left to right)(Bild: Christof Birbaumer)

Gstrein saved the Austrians
Co-favorite Manuel Feller was eliminated in the first run. Michael Matt finished eighth and Marco Schwarz tenth. Gstrein saved the Austrian men's ski team from their second ever "zero" in individual events at the Olympics. In 2010, there was nothing to celebrate in Whistler in what were then five events, including the traditional combined. The results of this year's Games are further enhanced by the silver medal in the team combined event, which is not part of the regular World Cup schedule, won by Vincent Kriechmayr/Feller.

Great jubilation for Fabio Gstrein(Bild: Christof Birbaumer)

  With snowfall and poor visibility on a selective course, the dropout rate in the first run was extremely high. Only 44 of the 95 racers made it into the rankings. Giant slalom Olympic champion Lucas Pinheiro Braathen was eliminated with the fastest time after the first run, as were two-time season winner Paco Rassat and the fast Finn Eduard Hallberg. For Feller, the race was over after 30 seconds in a hairpin turn.

It was an early end for Lucas Pinheiro Braathen.(Bild: EPA/ANNA SZILAGYI)

"I threw everything I had into it. With the visibility and the deteriorating slope, there are a few surprises that you don't see. For me, it was one surprise too many," said Feller, who was thrown off course by a small bump. "It's an extremely difficult course, too. It gets harder with every number."

Strong nerves
Seemingly unimpressed by this, Gstrein skied from 12th to 3rd, putting himself in a perfect starting position. "We are the best in the world, we should be able to handle the course setting," said the Tyrolean before a final with completely different characteristics. The snowfall had stopped at noon and the course was much more twisty. Kristoffersen set a top time as sixth-last, but Gstrein countered with the fastest run time. Meillard only decided the neck-and-neck race in the final meters. McGrath, who had beaten Meillard by just under six tenths in the first run, went off course early and buried himself in the snow off the piste in disappointment.

Marco Schwarz(Bild: Christof Birbaumer)

Schwarz delivered his best slalom performance of the season. Tenth place was little consolation for the Carinthian. "No medal, not satisfactory – I'll be happy when I can go home." The successful medal collector at World Championships is still waiting for his first Olympic individual medal. Matt said he was very happy for "Ötzi," so his feelings were mixed. "For me, it was almost over after the first run. The second run wasn't ideal either. But even with a flawless run, it wouldn't have been enough."

Unknowns in the big showcase
Due to the quota restrictions for the traditional skiing countries and the many withdrawals of top skiers, a 8.37-second gap to the top 30 was acceptable. Iceland's Jon Erik Sigurdsson opened the second run ahead of Viano Richardson, an athlete who grew up in France and competes for Haiti. 70 different nations were at the start.