Austrian skier Manuel Feller pleases home crowd with surprise World Cup slalom win in Kitzbühel

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KITZBÜHEL, Austria (AP) — Manuel Feller pleased the home crowd with a surprise win in the World Cup slalom of the classic Hahnenkamm event on Sunday, a day after the Austrian team had a disastrous result in the downhill.

Feller, fourth after the opening leg, kneeled on the snow in the finish area after his run as he watched the final three racers all coming up well short, including first-run leader and world champion Loic Meillard, who finished 0.35 behind in second.

Meillard was seeking his first slalom win of the season after two podiums in December, though he did win a giant slalom in France last month.

Germany’s Linus Strasser, who won the race two years ago, was 0.53 behind in third after edging out Lucas Pinheiro Braathen by four-hundredths for a place on the podium.

When his victory was confirmed, Feller got up, held one of his skis in the air and let out a loud scream.

“I can’t describe how much this means to me,” the Austrian said in a tearful course-side interview.

“This year I was close to quit a few times, just no energy anymore for a few races. But all my life, quitting was no option, so I kept on going.”

His victory came a day after Vincent Kriechmayr in 13th was the best Austrian finisher in the storied Hahnenkamm downhill, which marked the worst result for the home team in the history of the race.

Feller was the 2023-24 slalom champion but has been struggling with back pain in recent years. He had not won a race since triumphing in Palisades Tahoe, California, in March 2024, and had not had a podium result in the current campaign.

“It was probably my toughest season, probably one of the toughest parts of my life,” Feller said. “It’s only skiing, but right now, skiing feels pretty good.”

Feller became the first Austrian winner of the Kitzbühel slalom since Marcel Hirscher triumphed nine years ago.

In the first run, World Cup discipline leader Atle Lie McGrath skied out.

“I’m obviously very disappointed and it hurts a lot,” McGrath said. “I was at the start with a good mindset. I really tried to push and stuff like that happens.”

The United States-born Norwegian went top of the standings last week after winning in Wengen, but has now been overtaken by his close friend and former teammate, Pinheiro Braathen, who competes for Brazil.

A night race on Wednesday in Schladming is the final slalom before the Milan Cortina Olympics.

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AP skiing: https://apnews.com/hub/alpine-skiing