Mayer delights home crowd with Kitzbuehel downhill victory

Matthias Mayer won classic World Cup downhill on Streif course on Saturday, becoming first Austrian winner of event in six years.

In cloudy conditions but on a perfect track, Mayer crowned a gutsy run by finishing 0.22 ahead of Austrian teammate Vincent Kriechmayr and Switzerland’s Beat Feuz, who tied for second.

It was eighth career World Cup win for two-time Olympic champion and third of season, after triumphing in a super-G in Lake Louise, Alberta, in December and an Alpine combined in Wengen, Switzerland, last week.

Austrian had won prestigious race, which is usually attended by tens of thousands of spectators, since Hannes Reichelt in 2014.

World Cup downhill champion Feuz was denied victory in circuit’s most challenging race once again, as he finished runner-up for fourth time in last five years.

Feuz, however, extended his lead in discipline standings. He is currently 96 points clear of Dominik Paris, who won downhill here last season, while Mayer climbed to third, trailing Feuz by 180 points.

Paris has been ruled out for remainder of season after tearing ACL and fracturing fibula head in his right knee in a crash during super-G practice this week.

France duo Johan Clarey and Maxence Muzaton placed fourth and fifth, respectively, while Kjetil Jansrud, who won a super-G here Friday, finished sixth.

American downhiller Steven Nyman was among fastest starters and still was ahead of Mayer’s time at fourth split time but he couldn’t match Austrian’s pace in demanding bottom section of course.

Nyman came 1.05 off lead in 13th, five places behind best American finisher, Bryce Bennett.

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