Janica Kostelic: Return of a Champion
Croatian teenager Janica Kostelic, shaking off any effects from ligament surgery 11 months ago, achieved an incredible comeback in the season’s first slalom. She crushed the other women favorites with her aggressive style, winning by a gaping margin of almost two seconds.

The 18-year-old skier from Zagreb, 3rd here two years ago in her first ever World Cup slalom, beat Germany’s Martina Ertl, the winner from Soelden three weeks ago, by 1.73 seconds. France’s Christel Saioni was 3rd, ahead of the defending slalom World Cup champion Spela Pretnar from Slovenia.

Many favored skiers had a hard time handling the demanding course - including America’s Kristina Koznick, only 12th, Sweden’s Anja Paerson who finished 18th and Austria’s Renate Goetschl, a far 20th.

Kostelic, who went down December 16, 1999 with four torn ligaments in her right knee following a downhill training crash in St. Moritz, Switzerland, celebrated her 3rd success in that specialty. Last year she won two slaloms back-to-back at Serre-Chevalier, France, and Sestriere in Italy. She was in the lead in the Overall and the Slalom standings before her accident.

"My first run was good, but Janica killed us."

Janica was surprised by her performance after some disappointing results in past US races, including two Nor-Am slaloms in Colorado. She also caught a cold coming to America ten days ago and she didn’t believe she had enough energy to dominate the race.

"I was quite relaxed and that may explain this result," Kostelic said. "I was not expecting too much from this race and I skied without any pressure. I’m only aiming for a safe season this winter. I want to recover slowly from my injury and get back in shape for the 2002 Olympics."

"My first run was perfect...so easy. I had such a good rhythm," Kostelic added. "I had some mistakes on my second run, but I kept attacking. That's how I always ski."

Martina Ertl of Germany, who battled a series of injuries herself a year ago, is one of the few four-event skiers on the tour. She increased her lead in the Overall World Cup standings with her 2nd place finish. It was a strong return for her in slalom - an event in which she didn’t score any top-3 results since the World Cup finals in Crans-Montana in March 1998.

"A year ago, I was not able to qualify in the first slalom at Copper Mountain, and here I’m among the best skiers from last season. I’m really glad because I went through a bad time in the two past seasons."

A two-time World Cup giant slalom champion, Ertl won the opening race of the season, a GS in Soelden, Austria, and was 7th Thursday in the Park City GS. However, she was anxious about her slalom, especially since she had a hard time last winter getting used to the shorter skis introduced in alpine ski racing by the ski manufacturers.

"I've started well before, but now I just want to have a good time with my skiing. Last year I didn't have fun - I remember so many times after races when I was crying - and now, whether I'm first or not, I’m enjoying my skiing."

Saioni, runner-up last March to Pretnar in the World Cup slalom standings, was pleased to see that she hasn’t lost her grip in slalom after training much more in GS than in the past.

"It's important for the mind to start in a good position," Saioni said. "This year I have two disciplines, GS and slalom, and this is nice for me. I want to stay on top in slalom. My first run was good, but Janica killed us."

But Saioni wasn’t surprised by Kostelic's explosive return today. "She’s such a talent and I can imagine that she must be very motivated now."

Three American qualified for the second race, but Kristina Koznick was the only one able to make it until the end. Caroline Lalive and Sarah Schlepper crashed in the second run.

Kristina was not too pleased with her performance since she aims to play a major role in the fight for the slalom World Cup title. She lost over three seconds on Kostelic. "Maybe I was to tense, but I never found my rhythm today," she said. "I’m far from the leaders, but I know I can come back. I did it already last winter." The US skier won the last two slaloms in March 2000 and she was 4th here in 1997.

Another great battle will take place on Sunday in the last event at Park City. In the men’s slalom, USA’s Bode Miller and Erik Schlopy hope to be able to remain strong as the did in Friday’s GS. The Austrian team, which hasn’t won a race here so far, will try to save their honor with top slalom racers such as Mario Matt, Benjamin Raich or Rainer Schoenfelder.

— Patrick Lang, World Cup Correspondent

Races this weekend: Women's GS | Men's GS | Men's Slalom | Park City Preview

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