Kathrin Hölzl wins DSV's first gold in 8 years

The Alpine World Ski Championships in Val d’Isère, France, which were overshadowed by some weather-related setbacks and criticized for supposedly overly difficult slopes, have produced the first success story from a German perspective. Kathrin Hölzl, who is from Berchtesgaden in Bavaria, unexpectedly became world champion in the giant slalom, relegating Tina Maze (Slovenia) and Tanja Poutiainen (Finland) to second and third place. With Kathrin Hölzl’s world title in the giant slalom in Val d’Isère, a drought of more than 50 individual events without a medal at World Championships or Olympic Games also came to an end for the German Ski Association (DSV). The last medal was also gold, won when Martina Ertl left the competition behind in the alpine combined event of slalom and downhill at the 2001 World Championships in St. Anton (Austria).

Kathrin Hölzl’s world title in Val d’Isère is all the more surprising given that she had never won a World Cup race before. After Kathrin Hölzl had been in fourth place following the first run, she delivered a brilliant second run that earned her the gold medal by a razor-thin margin over Maze. Viktoria Rebensburg (Kreuth) dropped from third to ninth in the second run, but in light of Kathrin Hölzl’s world title, that was of merely statistical significance. Maria Riesch (Garmisch-Partenkirchen) finished 29th, second-last, after a fall. In the slalom, which will close the World Ski Championships in Val d’Isère next weekend, the DSV has another chance at a gold medal with Maria Riesch.