LA MOLINA, SPA Finland’s Tanja Poutiainen has her first FIS Alpine World Cup giant slalom win of the 2008/09 season, and already her third podium of the season in the discipline, winning today’s World Cup race in La Molina, SPA.
Poutiainen, who was fourth after today’s opening run, moves into the overall lead in the ladies World Cup standings with the win with 360 World Cup points, just two ahead of American Lindsey Vonn.
Poutiainen finished in a two-run combined time of two minutes 16.76 seconds with Italian Manuela Moelgg second just 0.02s back and Austrian Nicole Hosp third. Kathrin Zettel of Austria was the leader of after one run today but caught an edge in the second run and did not finish.
Canada’s Geneviève Simard (Val-Morin, QC) narrowly missed qualifying for the second run, finishing the opening run 32nd, just 0.14s out of the top 30. Marie-Michèle Gagnon (Lac-Etchemin, QC), participating in the first World Cup event of her career, placed 48th in run #1 and did not qualify for the second run.
Today’s race can be seen on the Pontiac Alpine Ski Series on CBC at 2 p.m. ET (12 p.m. MT)
LA MOLINA, SPA – DEC 13, 2008 – GS - LADIES
| POS | BIB | NAME | YOB | NAT | 1st | 2nd | TOT |
| 1 | 3 | POUTIAINEN Tanja | 1980 | FIN | 1:07.74 | 1:09.02 | 2:16.76 |
| 2 | 4 | MOELGG Manuela | 1983 | ITA | 1:07.29 | 1:09.49 | 2:16.78 |
| 3 | 13 | HOSP Nicole | 1983 | AUT | 1:07.85 | 1:09.56 | 2:17.41 |
| 4 | 7 | GOERGL Elisabeth | 1981 | AUT | 1:08.13 | 1:10.05 | 2:18.18 |
| 5 | 20 | KIRCHGASSER Michaela | 1985 | AUT | 1:08.90 | 1:09.30 | 2:18.20 |
| 6 | 26 | GUT Lara | 1991 | SUI | 1:08.04 | 1:10.28 | 2:18.32 |
| 7 | 9 | PIETILAE-HOLMNER Maria | 1986 | SWE | 1:07.57 | 1:10.83 | 2:18.40 |
| 8 | 14 | WORLEY Tessa | 1989 | FRA | 1:08.37 | 1:10.12 | 2:18.49 |
| 9 | 27 | MAZE Tina | 1983 | SLO | 1:08.46 | 1:10.04 | 2:18.50 |
| 10 | 17 | RIESCH Maria | 1984 | GER | 1:08.45 | 1:10.08 | 2:18.53 |
Did not qualify 1st run: GAGNON Marie-Michele (CAN), SIMARD Genevieve (CAN)
