Moelgg defies strong winds to claim 1st WCup win in 8 years
ZAGREB, Croatia — As soon as Italian veteran Manfred Moelgg crossed the line at a men’s World Cup night slalom on Thursday, Alberto Tomba pumped his fist in the finish area.
The slalom great from the 1980s and 90s was ecstatic for Moelgg ending an almost eight-year wait for his third career victory. Moelgg was sidelined for almost a year after tearing an Achilles tendon in 2014.
After dense snowfall in the opening run, Moelgg endured strong winds better than anyone in the final leg on the Crveni Spust course to beat Felix Neureuther of Germany by 0.72 seconds.
“It was unbelievable,” the Italian said. “In training I am skiing very hard and very good, and I wanted to bring that into the race. To win in these conditions is pretty special.”