Le podium
- 1. Albert Popov (BUL) 1: 45,22 minutes
- 2. Loïc Meillard (SUI) +0.44
- 3. Samuel Collector (CRO) +0,46
Anyone betting on this podium during the Madonna di Campiglio night slalom can expect a great victory. After all, third-place finisher Samuel Kolega had never been on a World Cup podium before and Albert Popov had never won a World Cup race. Both changed Wednesday night in the spotlight.
Popov, who is only 1.64m tall and the smallest rider in the peloton, showed a fantastic steep climb in the decider and moved from 8th to 1st place. The Bulgarian also took advantage of the failure of leader Atle Lie McGrath (NOR), who slipped into the lead. Kolega, already 5th and 6th this season, defended his 3rd place in the decision.
There has already been a Bulgarian winner once
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Albert Popov’s slalom triumph is a personal first for the Bulgarian, but he is not the first World Cup winner in his home country. Peter Popangelov also won a slalom. Exactly 45 years ago today in Lenggries (GER).
However, Loïc Meillard’s second place is not a surprise. The Valaisien is consistency personified in slalom this season. Ranks 3, 5, 3, 2 and again 2 prove it. These good results allowed Meillard to take the lead in the slalom rankings after the 5th race of the season and to go to the “Chuenisbärgli” in Adelboden as leader.
Many high-profile failures
Madonna di Campiglio’s demanding slope resulted in 23 failures in the first round. Clément Noël (FRA) and Timon Haugan (NOR) won a double and a singles season winner in quick succession. The second round was also marked by failures: 9 of the 30 drivers did not see the finish. Besides McGrath, the two Austrians Manuel Feller (4th after the first run) and Michael Matt (7th) were eliminated.
-The other Swiss
- 7. Daniel Noel +0.87
- 15. Tanguy Nef +1.86
- Out in the 2nd round: Noel von Grünigen
- Missed the 2nd run: Ramon Zenhäusern (33rd), Marc Rochat (44th), Luca Aerni (DNF).
Daniel Yule has won 3 of the last 6 slaloms at Madonna di Campiglio. It was already clear after the first run that a fourth triumph would not be the case. Yule (18th) lost 1.64 seconds to McGrath. At least the 31-year-old managed to make a marked improvement in the second round, allowing him to jump to 7th place. Yule has never looked so good this season. Without an embarrassing mistake in the lowest part of the course, an even better ranking would have been possible for him.
The race was boring for Noel von Grünigen. The 30-year-old confidently qualified for the second round in 20th place with starting number 45. He had failed to do so in the last 11 attempts at World Cup level. Von Grünigen once again held his own in the decider, but escaped just before the final split and was eliminated.
It was also a new disappointment for Ramon Zenhäuser. For the third time in a row, the Valaisan missed qualifying for the second round. This time he was 0.11 seconds short. This means that 20th place in Levi (FIN) remains by far the best result of the season for Zenhäuser. Marc Rochat didn’t have it either. For a long time, he was in last place in the first run, 3.01 seconds behind. Only with the starting number 60 did a driver end up being slower than Rochat.
This is how it continues
The slalom racers move to Adelboden on Thursday, where a slalom (Saturday) and a giant slalom (Sunday) are on the program for the weekend. The men’s World Cup will also take place in Switzerland the following week: the Lauberhorn races will take place from Friday to Sunday.
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