Austria's Reinfried Herbst is riding a lot of momentum heading into the Olympic slalom event. He won two World Cup titles in January alone, and is a nine-time World Cup winner in the event.
EMAIL
| PRINT
| REPORT TYPO
| SEND YOUR FEEDBACK
|
Olympic Contenders: Men's Slalom
- February 27, 2010 12:44 AM |
- By Noah Love
Story provided by
Here is a look at the competition in the men's slalom, which starts on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET:
The Contenders
Austria's Reinfried Herbst is riding a lot of momentum heading into the Olympic slalom event. He won two World Cup titles in January alone, and is a nine-time World Cup winner in the event. Herbst is also the reigning silver medalist from Turin.
France's Julien Lizeroux is the most likely to upset Herbst in the quest for gold. He was the silver medalist at the 2009 World Championships, and has three World Cup titles under his belt, most recently taking the top podium spot on Jan. 10th.
Another competitor for the podium is 30-year-old Ivica Kostelic of Croatia, who is ranked third in the world. He is in the twilight of his career, however, with his last World Championship coming in 2003. But, like Herbst, he has a significant amount of World Cup titles under his belt (nine), with the most recent one coming on Jan. 17.
The Top Five (World Cup standings)
1. Reinfried Herbst, Austria, 505 pts
2. Julien Lizeroux, France, 462 pts
3. Ivica Kostelic, Croatia 334 pts
4. Silvan Zurbriggen, Switzerland, 329 pts
5. Benjamin Raich, Austria, 304 pts
Canadian Medal Hopes
It's up to Michael Janyk, who's ranked 10th on the World Cup circuit and has yet to reach the podium so far at the Olympic Games (or the top 10 for that matter). His chance at finally ending that medal drought here is unlikely.
About the Author
- Bruce Arthur Bruce Arthur is the National Post's national sports columnist. A Vancouver native, he has been with the Post since 2001, and a columnist since 2005. He is covering his second Olympics, after the 2008 Games in Beijing. He expects these Games to be slightly less propagandistic, and for China to win slightly fewer medals.
- Joe O'Connor Joe O'Connor is a roving sports feature writer with an open-ended beat. He joined the National Post in 2002, and has spent the past seven years bouncing from sport to sport, offering fresh perspectives and delivering unique stories wherever he goes. Whether it has been getting Don Cherry to open up about his love life; George Chuvalo to talk about heartbreaking loss; or racing down the side of a mountain with former Crazy Canuck, Dave Irwin, the veteran Postie chases a story wherever it leads. Before joining the newspaper he was a two-time silver medalist at the National Magazine Awards. Vancouver will be his first Olympics.
Recent Entries
- To Iginla, Crosby's call sounded like gold
- "Iggy!" It's a scream Jarome Iginla has heard many times in his career. But never this loudly, never with so much urgency.... Continue reading this post
- Olympic Memories: Heartbreak and triumph
- For all the moments that made you so damned happy you wanted to cry -- the triumph of Alex Bilodeau and his brother Frederic, the delirium of Marianne St-Gelais as she watched her boyfriend Charles Hamelin win gold, the pure... Continue reading this post
- Olympic Memories: The strength of a lion
- It happened in a blink. A skier was skittering down a steep and icy slope at Whistler Olympic Park and disappeared into the woods.... Continue reading this post
