Val d'Isère (France) (AFP)
Starting with the number 1 bib, Alexis Pinturault largely dominated the first round of the Val d'Isère Alpine Ski World Cup slalom on Sunday, while Clément Noël went at fault.
Canceled on Saturday because of the wind, the slalom started well on Sunday under a blue sky: Alexis Pinturault took advantage of this to create significant gaps and beat the American Luke Winters (at 59 hundredths) who created the surprise with the bib 40. The Swiss Ramon Zenhaeusern is third at 72 hundredths.
"As usual the sensations are difficult with this demanding track and this track, but it is always the case on + the Face + (de Bellevarde, the name of the track), said the Frenchman. In the second round I will try to have fun, today the weather is nice, there are people, as much to enjoy it. "
Disillusionment, however, for Clément Noël, second in the first slalom of the season in Levi (Finland) at the end of November, but who did not finish the first route on Sunday. His teammates Jean-Baptiste Grange and Julien Lizeroux went to the fault on the same door, in the last third of the course, while Victor Muffat-Jeandet is 14th (at 1 sec 52).
The Norwegian Henrik Kristoffersen, winner at Levi and rival of Pinturault for the general classification, is him out of the race for the final victory after having committed a big fault which relegated him to almost 3 seconds (27th at 2 sec 82).
The second round will start at 12:30 p.m.
© 2019 AFP