Rumpfhuber breaks leg in training
HAUS IM ENNSTAL, Austria (Reuters) -- Austrian Ingrid Rumpfhuber was airlifted to hospital after breaking her left leg during final training for the final downhill races of the season on Austria's Krummholz course.
Rumpfhuber suffered a compound fracture, breaking both bones in her lower left leg, after landing hard off a jump.
Germany's Maria Riesch joined the favorites for races on Friday and Saturday by setting the pace.
German Regina Haeusl, who tore cruciate knee ligaments in a crash in the opening training run on Wednesday, will also be sidelined for the rest of the season.
Riesch, one of only a handful of racers to compete and score in all of Alpine skiing's four disciplines, said the course had become much faster as the fresh layer of snow, which had slowed down the racers during the first training, was now more compact.
"You've got to be a good glider and be able to take the speed with you out of the bends. If you make just the smallest mistake it will be very difficult to make up the lost speed," the German said.
Olympic downhill champion Carole Montillet was second in Thursday's training event ahead of Italian Isolde Kostner but 0.56 seconds off Riesch's pace.
Copyright 2004
Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
