seconds off the winning pace. Zuzulova matched her result the last time the World Cup women stopped
in Kranjska Gora in 2007.
Maze (fourth after the first run) received a boisterous welcome in the finish area after being the first
woman in 13 starters to top Austrian Kathrin Zettel’s leading second run time. The celebration was short
lived, however, as each of the following three women claimed the podium spots, pushing Maze to fourth
on the day.
“The slalom race was really tough; I fought as much as possible,” said Maze, who said her limited
experience on the hill diminished her home course advantage. “I haven’t skied many times here, so I
didn’t have such an advantage ahead of other racers. The fans are always there for me, but it was tough
today.”
Vonn led the Americans in both runs, standing eighth after the first run, and looked very strong at the
top of the second run course but lost time in the bottom flat section of the course to finish seventh. It was
her best result in a World Cup slalom since November 2010; she has not reached a slalom podium since
2009. “I definitely lost a bit of time at the bottom — similar to yesterday,” said Vonn. “But I’m happy with
my performance. I attacked from the start, which is what I wanted to do.”
Near the season’s midway point, it appears Vonn has the overall globe in the bag with a 282-point advantage on Maze in second. Schild stands third, 422 points behind Vonn.
Julia Mancuso, who skipped the last slalom in Zabreb, Croatia, stood 19th after the first run and held on
to earn World Cup points in 22nd. It was her first slalom finish since last March and only her third finish
in a World Cup slalom in three years.
Promising youngster Mikaela Shiffrin missed her shot at the second run by 0.44 seconds in 32nd place
after the first run. Hailey Duke also failed to qualify for the second run in the 44th position. Resi Steigler
was one of 26 racers to not finish the first run.
Lindsey Vonn maintained a
strong grip on the overall lead
with a pair of top- 10 finishes in
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