Raich becomes the World Cup leader
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Raich won slaloms at Wengen in 1999 and 2001
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WENGEN, Switzerland (Reuter) -- Austrian Benjamin Raich moved to the top of the overall World Cup standings with victory in a slalom in Wengen after several of his rivals dropped out of the first leg.
Raich's two-leg time of one minute 40.50 seconds put him 0.47 seconds ahead of his compatriot Rainer Schoenfelder with Croatian world champion Ivica Kostelic third.
The victory followed wins in the Wengen slalom in 1999 and 2001 and pushed Raich to the top of the overall standings.
Previous leader Lasse Kjus, of Norway, could manage only 17th place.
"I like Wengen -- it was love at first sight," said Raich, 25. "It is a very difficult slope so that makes me very happy to win today.
"I didn't think about the World Cup positions, I just wanted to win the slalom. I feel this is my best season in three or four years. I am very relaxed and just enjoying what I am doing."
Schoenfelder was delighted to be back on the podium for only the second time this season after struggling for months with a cracked rib.
"It just happened, I don't know how," he said of the injury. "I cannot sleep, I always wake up, but I am a night person so it is not too bad. I am going to go back to the doctors and they will try to do something about it."
Driving snow and a tricky course layout claimed a host of victims on the first run, including defending World Cup champion Kalle Palander, this year's leader Giorgio Rocca and American Bode Miller.
Raich, who was the only one of the first four starters to make it to the bottom of the 57-gate course on the first run, finished his second run in 49.00 seconds despite almost losing control at the finish.
Kostelic, who returned to racing two weeks ago after knee surgery, was eighth after the first leg.
Two of the men faster than him went out in the second leg. Swede Johan Brolenius straddled a gate and Italian Manfred Moelgg skied out.
Great feeling
"It is a great feeling," said Kostelic, who won in Wengen in 2002. "It is a great hill and this is the first podium since my operation. It is almost worth a victory for me. I am so happy. What more could I want?"
Austrian Heinz Schilchegger claimed his best slalom result of the season with fourth place, Canadian Thomas Grandi finished fifth and former world champion Mario Matt made it four Austrians in the top six.
Grandi was only 26th after the first leg but skied an aggressive second run to record the best result of his career in slalom.
"I knew I had a great opportunity because Wengen is always difficult, especially when the weather is bad," he said. "Many racers are afraid to attack hard on this steep slope."
Palander, who has won slaloms this season in Park City and Flachau, said that conditions had been tough but it was his own mistake that knocked him out of the first run.
"It is not easy at the top," the Finn said. "They put water there yesterday. In some places it is very icy and other places it is totally soft so it is really difficult to ski and you can't see so much."
Rocca, who won last weekend's slalom in Chamonix and has not finished lower than fourth in the discipline this season, was disappointed not to qualify for the second run.
"I attacked, I tried my best but the visibility was a problem," said the Italian. "I couldn't see the ruts and the holes."
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Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
