Ligety, Miller 15-16 in Adelboden SL

ADELBODEN, Switzerland (Jan. 11) - The steep off camber finish pitch at Adelboden took its toll on 2006 Olympic combined champion Ted Ligety (Park City, UT) and reigning World Cup overall champion Bode Miller (Franconia, NH) as the Americans finished 15-16 respectively in a World Cup slalom. Austrian Reinfried Herbst claimed his first podium since winning the slalom at last winter's World Cup Finals to take the win.

Jimmy Cochran (Keene, NH) was 26th for his first World Cup points this season. Frenchman Jean-Baptiste Grange retained the slalom points lead finishing ninth and Benni Raich of Austria held onto the pole position for the World Cup overall finishing 11th.

"You had to ski aggressive the whole way down, especially the final pitch because the set wasn't that hard," said Head Coach Sasha Rearick. "If you were the least bit defensive in your skiing, you were out of it."

Ligety powered through the first three timing intervals with the lead, then had to throw his skis sideways after a flush on the lower portion of the hill, knocking him out of podium contention.

"I was skiing well, then hit that flush. It was set just over a roll and launched me," said Ligety. "The only way I was going to make the next gate was to chuck my skis sideways and that cost me a lot of time. I don't think I was going to catch Herbst, but I was looking for a lot more." 

Sunshine and perfect snow conditions for both runs welcomed racers and the again huge crowd, but without a Swiss racer in the final, the energy level was significantly lower than Saturday's giant slalom.

"It was a tough day for the Swiss guys and that took the volume down quite a bit, but it was still fun. The snow was absolutely perfect and didn't break up at all in the second run. Light was again a factor in the second run, but that's what happens - it gets dark early over here."

As the first man out of the start gate in the final, Cochran used a clean course to land his first World Cup points of the season, a result Rearick points to as a move in the right direction.

"Jimmy has been fast in training and he's been fast in the races, he just hasn't been able to get to the bottom of the hill this year," said Rearick. "I was happy with the way he skied in the first run. He had some mistakes in the second run that we need to clean up, but this is good for his confidence."

The World Cup now swings to nearby Wengen for a super combined, the classic Lauberhorn downhill and a slalom. Ligety plans to take advantage of the next week with a series of training days in order to prepare for the slalom and will not race the super combi or the downhill.

Wengen kicks off a block of speed and tech races over the next three weeks that include stops in Kitzbuehel, Austria and Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany before the 2009 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships open on Feb. 2 in Val d'Isere, France.

OFFICIAL RESULTS
2009 AUDI FIS WORLD CUP
Adelboden, Switzerland - Jan. 11, 2009
Men's Slalom

1. Reinfried Herbst, Austria, 1:42.95
2. Manfred Pranger, Austria, 1:43.13
3. Felix Neureuther, Germany, 1:43.27
4. Andre Myhrer, Sweden, 1:43.29
5. Manfred Moelgg, Italy, 1:43.33
-
15. Ted Ligety, Park City, UT, 1:44.06
16. Bode Miller, Franconia, NH, 1:44.08
26. Jimmy Cochran, Keene, NH, J1:45.15
-
DNF1: Tim Jitloff, Reno, NV
-
DNQ: Cody Marshall, Pittsfield, VT; Tim Kelley, Starksboro, VT

For complete results click here.