Austria’s Hannes Reichelt has pipped Swiss Didier Cuche as alpine’s speed event specialists were given a first glimpse of how difficult it will be to win Olympic downhill gold in 2014.
Sochi will host the Olympic Games in two years time and over the next two weeks four official World Cup races will be held at this Caucasus mountain resort an hour north of Sochi.
The 3495-metre-long men’s downhill course designed by 1972 Olympic champion Bernhard Russi is designed to reward skiers who possess strong technical as well as gliding skills.
After the first of three training runs leading up to Saturday’s World Cup downhill, some were ecstatic while others complained it was a little too technical.
Most, however, agreed that with a few changes it would be more than worthy of hosting the blue riband event of alpine skiing in two years time.
Cuche, who is set to retire at the end of the season, finished only 0.25sec behind Reichhelt’s time of 2min 12.91sec to set his stall out for a fourth downhill win this season.
“It’s a magnificent course,” said Cuche, who is looking to cement his lead in the World Cup downhill standings this weekend.
“There are maybe a few too many turns at the top but it could be adapted a little to change that. The first 40 secs or so it resembles more a super-G (super giant slalom) than a downhill, albeit a very fast super-G.”
Italian Christof Innerhofer finished 1.06secs off Reichhelt’s time and was tied for fifth place, which left him satisfied.
Having complained for months of not getting the hard, icy snow conditions he prefers, his victory hopes for Saturday – and for the Olympics – were given a welcome boost.
“The last few months I’ve been sad because all we’ve had is really soft snow, but I’ve had a real pleasant surprise coming here because I love icy courses,” he said.
“It’s a good downhill for the Olympic Games. At the Games, the best must win. And here, the best will win. It won’t be a guy who is just fast on the flat.”
With another two training runs scheduled on Thursday and Friday, some took a cautious approach to a course they were racing for the first time.
Olympic downhill champion Didier Defago, who scored his first World Cup downhill win in two seasons at Bormio in December, believes the twisting top section could prompt officials to tweak the course for the Games.
“There are an enormous amount of turns on the top part of the course, which is also quite tight at some sections,” said the Swiss.
“I think the first 50secs or so it’s more like a super-G. It has everything to become a really good downhill run, if they change a few things to make it a bit more fluid.”
American Ted Ligety meanwhile will race Saturday’s downhill, but is here mostly to challenge in Sunday’s super-combined.
He said this downhill course was definitely not for the faint-hearted.
“It’s definitely not easy,” said the American, the Olympic combined champion in 2006.
“It’s cool in the sense it’s not a mickey mouse downhill. It’s got some real big jumps in it, and has some big turns and is pretty fast in sections. It’s cool to see.”