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Mikaela Shiffrin also wins her fifth World Cup slalom of the season in Semmering, but can inspect the layout of the second run for longer than her rivals – so much so that Swiss-Ski is even considering the possibility of filing a complaint.
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- At the moment there seems to be no way to beat Mikaela Shiffrin in slalom. In Semmering he achieved his fifth victory in as many seasonal races in this discipline.
- What caused discussion, however, was an irregularity that emerged before the second heat. In fact, the jury slightly modified the route with little warning, when most of the athletes had already completed the inspection.
- The exceptions are Dzenifera Germane and Mikaela Shiffrin, who were granted an additional quarter of an hour for the inspection. “This gave them an advantage,” explains head coach of the Swiss women’s team Beat Tschuor.
The Semmering night slalom sparked debate. On the one hand due to the precarious conditions of the track, which already in the first heat caused huge gaps and a record number of exits. As many as 39 of the 79 athletes at the start were eliminated in the first pass, including the sixteen-year-old World Cup debutant Giada D’Antonio.
On the other hand, what caused discussion was an irregularity during the inspection of the second heat, after the jury decided at the last moment to slightly modify the marking. By then most of the athletes had already completed the inspection, except for Dzenifera Germane e Mikaela Shiffrin.
According to media reports, it was Shiffrin who complained about the affected section, prompting the jury to review the decision. Specifically, it was a long curve which, in the opinion of the multiple winner, was too dangerous given the poor condition of the track.
Swiss head coach Tschuor considers a complaint
The consequence: Shiffrin and Dzenifera Germane received from the jury – unlike the other competitors – an additional quarter of an hour for the inspection, thus also avoiding a disqualification that normally occurs in the event of an inspection that is too long.
“I spoke to the jury after the race, because we missed first place by only 9 cents,” said the head coach of the Swiss women’s team Beat Tschuor to the microphones of «SRF».
“They gave these two athletes more time for inspection and that gave them an advantage. I wanted to understand if I should file a complaint.”
The managers would then explain their actions to him in an understandable way. «A complaint would have been rejected», added Tschuor, specifying: «For me it was important to send a signal: this is not the case, the race must be fair for everyone. Even those who sit in these bodies must realize the consequences and be aware of them. I firmly believe that races should be decided on the track.”
