KRANJSKA GORA – Mikaela Shiffrin had a near-perfect run in the opening leg to take a clear lead in a women’s World Cup giant slalom Sunday.
The first racer on course, the American’s turns were clean all the way down the Podkoren hill as she built a lead of three-tenths of a second over Marta Bassino.
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Shiffrin placed sixth in a GS on the same course Saturday, which Bassino won.
“Yesterday was a big learning experience. I did a lot of analysis,” Shiffrin said.
“I changed a bit my focus, what I'm thinking in the course while I'm skiing. It felt a lot better, going with the hill and not fighting so much.”
Bassino has won three of the four races in the discipline this season, with Shiffrin winning the only other event, in Courchevel in December.
Michelle Gisin was 0.44 back in third, a day after the Swiss skier earned her first career podium in GS.
Local favorite Meta Hrovat, daughter of the village’s mayor, Janez Hrovat, was fourth after the opening run, followed by Tessa Worley in fifth.
Worley, the two-time world champion from France, finished runner-up to Bassino on Saturday after posting the fastest time in the final run.
Overall World Cup leader Petra Vlhova had 1.43 seconds to make up in the second run and Federica Brignone, the defending overall champion, was 1.89 behind.
This weekend’s races were moved from Maribor because of a lack of snow.
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