Alpine

Slalom Aces Truppe and Yule shine in Levi

The Fischer Race Family’s slalom aces shone with impressive performances and two podium places in Levi, Finland, at the weekend. In the ladies’ race, Austrian Katharina Truppe clinched her first ever World Cup podium finish, placing third behind US star Mikaela Shiffrin and Switzerland’s Wendy Holdener. Swiss racer Daniel Yule followed suit in the men’s race a day later, producing a fantastic second run to move up from seventh at the half-way stage to finish third.

First podium for Truppe

Truppe’s delight at her first ever podium place was understandably huge. Following a successful first run which put her in third, she stayed firm under pressure in the second run. “It was an extreme situation, I was extremely nervous,” she said of the circumstances before the second run. Soon afterwards she crossed the finish line in 59.87 seconds, again the third best time, proving that her “race form” is as it should be.

“For Levi, where it’s never really gone great for me, even a fourth place would have been a highlight,” said Truppe, who had never finished higher than fifteenth in her three previous outings. “I think I mustn’t put myself under too much pressure and should just get out there and race,” said the 23-year-old with a smile. This result also confirmed her leading role among the Austrian Ski Federation’s current racers.

Apart from Truppe, newcomer Katharina Huber was another of the Fischer ladies who impressed. The Austrian’s eighth place (3.40) was the first top ten finish of her career. German Marlene Schmotz was also among the points, finishing twenty-second.

Yule misses victory by 0.18

In the men’s race on Sunday, Fischer ace Daniel Yule also placed third after an excellent second run, with only 0.18 seconds separating him from winner Henrik Kristoffersen (NOR). The 26-year-old from Lower Valais chalked up his sixth top 3 World Cup finish overall, giving Switzerland its first ever podium place in the Finnish ski resort.

Swede Kristoffer Jakobsen shone in the second run with the fastest time. Starting with bib no. 51 (!), Jakobsen grabbed a fantastic sixth place – by far his best ever World Cup result. Experienced South Tyrolean Manfred Mölgg rounded off the impressive Fischer result with tenth place. Swiss racer Nef Tanguy had to settle for twenty-second in Levi.