ALPINE SKI WORLD CUP 1997/98
Wengen (SUI) Men's 5th Downhill. 16.Jan.1998
"The Beast" wins again, again and again and again

Alpine ski racing's new hero, Hermann Maier from Austria, has won his eighth World Cup event of the season (nine in total with his success at Val d'Isere before his disqualification) at Wengen in the fifth downhill race of the winter - his fifth in a row after the giant slaloms at Saalbach and Adelboden, Switzerland, and the two Super-Gs in Schladming, Austria.
The 25-year-old athlete from south of Salzburg clinched his second success in a downhill hold friday under difficult weather and race conditions on the final part of the "Classical" Lauberhorn course where no Austrian victory has been celebrated for thirteen years now. He beat by 68/100 the surprising French Nicolas Burtin while his room-mate Andres Schifferer came 3rd at 72/100.
Three other members of the powerful Austrian team finished behind Schifferer while the reigning World Champion Bruno Kernen was 7th in front of the 1994 Overall World Cup champion Kjetil Aamodt and two Italians. Ed Podivinsky was the best Canadian in 17th place while AJ Kitt scored one point in finishing 30th.
Maier's records are incredible for a skier who is only on his second World Cup season - and who would believe now that he was not part of any national selection two years ago when he set one of the best times as a forerunner in the World Cup giant slalom organized in his home town Flachau.
There are only a few former top stars such as France's Jean Claude Killy, Austrian legendary "Kaiser" Franz Klammer, Swedens fast and silent Ingemar Stenmark or skiing gladiators Marc Girardelli and Alberto Tomba who have also accumulated wins during one or several winters - but all had strong international experience before blooming at the highest level.
Not Maier who really came from nowhere to dominate the World Cup scene with his impressive aggressiveness, his cool manners and his superb technique. He keeps up surprising everybody with his strong performances on pistes he just discovered as it was the case with the demanding "Stelvio" track in Bormio, the "Kuonigbergli" in Adelboden or the "Lauberhorn" at Wengen which remained challenging for him even in his shorter version with his gliding sections which required very smooth and delicate skiing.
In fact, it was a jubilating Hermann Maier who received the congratulations of his friends and rivals after the race. "It's great to win such a great "Classic" which is completely at the opposite of the other more treacherous courses in Beaver Creek or Bormio" he said with a grin. This time I just try to ski in a normal way. But don't ask me how I did it : I have no precise answer. I just let my skis fly down the mountain".
A very instinctive skier Maier, made the best out of all the seasons spent working as a ski instructor in his parents ski school in Flachau while his rivals were fighting against the slalom poles during their training camps.
He can adapt his technique faster and better to new terrain's than any of his actual rivals...Not to forget than he only started to seriously compete this winter in downhill and that he has not trained this event last Summer.
On Sunday he will also start in his first ever World Cup slalom in Veysonnaz in his attempt to win the first season's World Cup combined. It will be a surprise if he would not surprise us with another of his fantastic coups which have marked this first part of the season.
In the fifteen competition in which he was classified, Maier went thirteen times on the podium !
In case of another win in Wengen, he would equal the record set by Killy or Stenmark who could also conquered six wins in six consecutive races in 1967 and 1978. He hopes that the race conditions would be fair for everybody this time and that the skiers will be able to rush down the entire beautiful run which last around 2,30. Fog and snowfall prevented them to race from the original start this time. In fact the competition had to be postponed and stopped several times before its end. Some of the usual favorites could not ski in good conditions.
Hopefully they will get another chance on Saturday. "You must ski with so much feeling to have a chance to clock a fast time" he added. "During the last training run I charged as usual and was much behind the leaders.
Men's 5th Downhill, 16.01.1998
Rank Name Nat. Total
 1 MAIER Hermann  AUT   1:44.89
 2 BURTIN Nicolas  FRA   1:45.57
 3 SCHIFFERER Andreas  AUT   1:45.61
 4 KNAUSS Hans  AUT   1:46.02
 5 EBERHARTER Stephan  AUT   1:46.16
 6 FRANZ Werner  AUT   1:46.17
 7 KERNEN Bruno Ii  SUI   1:46.20
 8 AAMODT Kjetil Andre  NOR   1:46.24
 9 PERATHONER Werner  ITA   1:46.35
 9 CATTANEO Luca  ITA   1:46.35
 11 STROBL Fritz  AUT   1:46.36
 12 GRUENENFELDER Juerg  SUI   1:46.37
 13 ASSINGER Roland  AUT   1:46.59
 14 KRAUSS Stefan  GER   1:46.65
 15 CUCHE Didier  SUI   1:46.71
 15 JAERBYN Patrik  SWE   1:46.71
 17 PODIVINSKY Ed  CAN   1:46.75
 18 RUNGGALDIER Peter  ITA   1:46.79
 19 SAUDER Luke  CAN   1:46.80
 20 CRETIER Jean-Luc  FRA   1:46.82
 21 ORTLIEB Patrick  AUT   1:46.83
 22 HOFFMANN Ambrosi  SUI   1:46.84
 23 HERRMANN Markus  SUI   1:46.88
 24 FATTORI Alessandro  ITA   1:46.89
 25 STEMMLE Brian  CAN   1:46.95
 26 SELETTO Erik  ITA   1:47.00
 27 TRINKL Hannes  AUT   1:47.16
 28 CAVEGN Franco  SUI   1:47.18
 29 PEN Peter  SLO   1:47.24
 30 KITT A J  USA   1:47.28
 31 BESSE William  SUI   1:47.29
 32 TOMII Tsuyoshi  JPN   1:47.32
 32 FLEISCHER Chad  USA   1:47.32
 34 GHEDINA Kristian  ITA   1:47.40
 35 GIGANDET Xavier  SUI   1:47.56
 36 ACCOLA Paul  SUI   1:47.58
 36 PRETOT David  FRA   1:47.58
 38 SENIGAGLIESI Alberto  ITA   1:47.76
 39 TSCHIEMER Hansueli  SUI   1:47.85
 40 NYBERG Fredrik  SWE   1:47.88
 41 PUCKETT Christopher  USA   1:48.14
 42 GALLI Lorenzo  ITA   1:48.18
 43 SIVERTSEN Kenneth  NOR   1:48.32
 44 BELL Graham  GBR   1:48.33
 45 ROSENER Jason  USA   1:48.61
 46 MARIN-CUDRAZ Frederic  FRA   1:48.93
 47 HASLER Juergen  LIE   1:48.96
 48 RUNGGALDIER Daniel  ITA   1:49.35
 49 DENERIAZ Antoine  FRA   1:49.40
 50 GROSJEAN Matthew  USA   1:49.47
 51 LINNEBERG Nils  CHI   1:52.82
 52 SCHWARZACHER-JOYCE Paul Patrick  IRE   1:54.03

Did not start:
VAITKUS Linas (LTU)

Did not finish:
GREBER Christian (AUT), MOE Tommy (USA), BREZAVSEK Ales (SLO), PICHLER Christian (AUT)

Disqualified:
RASMUSSEN Kyle (USA), BELTRAMETTI Silvano (SUI)