Once again a Ferstl wins the Streif

by Bruno Fleckenstein

40 years after his father's victory, Josef Ferstl wins a race, the Super-G, in Kitzbühel. Unhappy about having to start first, he did not put in a flawless run, but still managed an impressive run. As he said after the race, "Front numbers seem to bring me luck. At least in the super-G."

As the first favorite, Matthias Mayer started after him with the number 7 and was able to catch up especially in the middle section where Ferstl had lost time. But the speed in the final slope was not enough for him to take the lead. Vincent Kriechmayr skied two numbers later with anger in his stomach because of his botched downhill. And in the upper part he was close to Ferstl's time. Although he was in the lead in the lower part, it was not quite enough for him to win either. With number 15 Dominik Paris (ITA), the winner of the downhill, took part in the race and was among the fastest in the upper part. He also led the race for a while, but lost the decision in the traverse. With a tenth of a second behind, he finished in second place.

Beat Feuz (SUI) was another podium contender, but he lost control in the traverse and skied past the gate, but fortunately avoided a fall. Christoph Innerhofer (ITA) started the race with number 19 and was one of the closer favorites. But from top to bottom he struggled to keep control of his skis and stay on track. It was not his race. The fact that he nevertheless crossed the finish line only 0.46 sec. behind Ferstl shows what potential he has and what could have been possible. Then the Frenchman Johan Clarey tried his luck, who was actually not considered the favorite. And in the upper part he was close to Ferstl's time. Also in the lower part the 38-year-old convinced with an impressive performance and the intermediate lead. He missed the victory only by a hair's breadth, but cheered in the finish area when he realized his second final place.