Cuche ends Swiss World Cup wait
GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany (Reuters) -- Didier Cuche surprised the favorites to give Switzerland their first World Cup victory of the season in a men's downhill.
The 29-year-old clocked a winning time of one minute 59.49 seconds with an aggressive run down the Kandahar piste in this Bavarian Alps resort.
American Daron Rahlves was a close second in 1:59.57 while Austrian Stephan Eberharter, the overall World Cup champion, finished third in 1:59.70.
A fearless approach on the tricky upper part of the course, where many of the big names lost time, was the key to Cuche's victory, which ended a frustrating wait for his ski-mad nation.
Cuche, who scored the fifth World Cup victory of his career, had endured a disappointing season. He had often previously come close in Garmisch-Partenkirchen with four podium placings.
"I have wings when I come here," said Cuche. "There are courses where I feel particularly at ease and this is one of them.
"I wouldn't say it was a perfect race but it was a good one. It proves that the Swiss guys can ski."
The same three men were on the podium of last year's downhill here but in a different order, Eberharter winning ahead of Cuche and Rahlves.
Many had expected Rahlves to shine after his impressive display in last week in Kitzbuehel, where he had three podium finishes including a super-G win, and the American missed victory by eight hundredths of a second.
Kjus out
"I pushed it very hard in Kitzbuehel and I've got a bit of a cold but it's all right," Rahlves said. "I'm pleased for Didier. He's a tough guy and you need to be on such a rough course. He had a great run."
Olympic champion Fritz Strobl finished fourth while fellow Austrian Hermann Maier, who burst into the limelight here with his first victory in a super-G in 1997, had to be content with fifth place.
Austrian Benjamin Raich, who is chiefly a technical racer and did not compete on Friday, retains the lead in the overall World Cup standings.
Norway's Lasse Kjus remains second but will miss the rest of a season after a knee operation on Friday.
Kjus left Garmisch-Partenkirchen after feeling pain in his right knee during Thursday's downhill training run, which he failed to finish.
The 33-year-old hurt his knee after landing a jump in a downhill in Kitzbuehel on Saturday, two days after winning a downhill on the classic Austrian course.
Eberharter, who became the oldest winner in World Cup history by winning a downhill in Kitzbuehel on Saturday two months before his 35th birthday, retains the lead in the downhill standings.
Another downhill on Saturday and a super-G on Sunday will complete the weekend programme.
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