(Reuters) – Norwegian skier Aleksander Aamodt Kilde won a men’s World Cup downhill on Kitzbuehel’s fearsome Hahnenkamm slope on Saturday as Switzerland’s Olympic champion Beat Feuz headed into retirement.
Kilde finished 0.67 of a second faster in lightly falling snow than 42-year-old French skier Johan Clarey, making up for the disappointment of 16th place in Friday’s prestigious downhill at the Austrian resort.
It was the fifth downhill win of the season for the Norwegian, who leads the World Cup standings in the discipline but broke a wrist bone in Thursday practice.
Clarey broke his own record as the oldest Alpine skier to stand on a World Cup podium. The Frenchman last year became the oldest Olympic Alpine medallist when he won downhill silver in Beijing.
American Travis Ganong, 34, finished third a day after announcing he planned to retire at the end of the season.
“It was really tough conditions today with the snow fall. It was a good run, a great run down the Streif. If that was my last run down it, I am pretty happy. I love this hill,” said the American.
Feuz, 35, announced in December that he would retire after the second of two Kitzbuehel downhills and celebrated with his family after finishing 16th.
“The result was no longer important today,” he said.
“The last few weeks have been tough and exciting again but it’s wonderful to stop now. I’m happy, I’m satisfied, I’m healthy and can now go home with my family and enjoy it.”
Switzerland’s reigning overall World Cup champion and current leader Marco Odermatt did not start after injuring his left knee on Friday.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
