World Cup Finals: Mikaela Shiffrin gets best of Tina Maze for Slalom title, but Maze wins 3 titles

March 17:  Slovenian superstar Tina Maze may have clinched the World Cup Giant Slalom season crown in January, but that didn’t stop her from winning the final race of the season on Sunday (March 17) in Lenzerheide. The victory means Maze brought home three titles — Giant Slalom, Super G and Overall — while also setting the season record for overall points with 2,414 and for total podiums (24). Read more.

March 16: There is NO way an 18-year-old should be able to do what Mikaela Shiffrin did this season. Not only did she ski well enough all season to be in the hunt for the slalom season title going into the season’s final race, she was able to battle through the intense pressure to not only win the race but get the best of Tina Maze, who had a record-setting season. See how she did it with an amazing second run. Read more.

Weather 2, Ski Racing 0. That’s the score after heavy snow overnight and strong winds during the men’s Super G forced cancellation Thursday (March 14) of that race and the women’s competition in Lenzerheide at the World Cup Finals.

As a result,  Aksel Lund Svindal earned his second Cup title (adding Super G to Downhill) and Tina Maze added a third to her previous crowns in Overall and Giant Slalom. It was a reversal of fortune for Maze, who was virtually assured the Downhill season crown before fog canceled that race on Wednesday. The World Cup does not make up races at the Finals.

The cancellation was a disappointment for Julia Mancuso, who had a chance to catch Maze with a good showing (she trailed the Slovenian 420-365).  Here’s where to find 

Ted Ligety, Mr. GS, wins in Slovenia to claim World Cup season title in discipline

Ted Ligety (US Ski Team)

Ted Ligety made it official with his Giant Slalom victory on Saturday (March 9) at Kranjska Gora, Slovenia. The American really IS “Mr G.S.”, as he clinched his fourth season title in the discipline.

Not that is was a runaway. Even though Ligety has won five of the seven GS races this season, the amazing Austrian Marcel Hirscher, who ran second, had stayed close enough in the season standings that it took until Saturday for him to be eliminated. Read more.

The American has been on fire this season, dominating

Tina Maze wins, sets up winner-takes-all race with Mikaela Shiffrin for World Cup slalom title

UPDATE: Slovenian superstar Tina Maze won the slalom on Sunday (March 10), in Ofterschwang, Germany, to overtake Mikaela Shiffrin in the slalom standings. Even though the 17-year-old American earned an amazing sixth podium this season (plus a World Championship) with her third-place finish, she now stands 7 points behind the Slovenian with one race to go. Learn more.

March 9: Austrian Anna Fenninger won Saturday’s (March 9) Giant Slalom in Ofterschwang, Germany. Fenninger bested Tina Maze, who still will win the discipline for the season, and Viktoria Rebensburg filled out the podium. Julia Mancuso topped

Ted Ligety scores another podium to keep lead in World Cup Giant Slalom

Ted Ligety (US Ski Team photo)

What kind of a season has it been for Ted Ligety? It’s news when he DOESN’T win a World Cup race.

The American has been on fire, dominating the Giant Slalom discipline on the circuit, and in the recent FIS Alpine Ski World Championships Ligety won an astonishing three medals (Super G, Super Combined and Giant Slalom).

But you can’t win ’em all, as Ligety proved by placing third in a Giant Slalom on Sunday (Feb. 24) in Garmisch. Frenchman Alexis Pinturault won the race, followed by Austrian Marcel Hirscher. Read more.

Ligety’s result does mean he has finished on the podium in all six of this season’s giant slalom races (4 wins, 2 thirds) and leads (520-415) Hirscher in GS discipline standings.

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Mikaela Shiffrin’s Gold in Slalom at World Championships continues her historic season

Mikaela Shiffrin continued her amazing season with Gold in Slalom at the 42nd FIS Alpine Ski World Championships in Schladming, Austria.

The victory on Saturday (Feb. 16) means the 17-year-old from Colorado now has four slalom victories this season and has stamped herself as both the world’s top World Cup slalom racer and the favorite headed into the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. (And she might be a contender in Giant Slalom after a strong sixth-place finish at the championships).

Shiffrin was third after the first run to  leader Frida Hansdotter, but out-skied her in the second run to relegate Hansdotter to silver. Home country favorite Michaela Kirchgasser took the bronze. Read more.

MEN’S SLALOM

Ted Ligety will just have to “settle” for three golds at the World Championships after the American popped out of his ski on the first run in Men’s Slalom on Sunday (Feb. 17).

Defending overall World Cup champ Marcel Hirscher delighted the home country faith with the win, while countryman Mario Matt added to the fun with bronze.  Felix Neureuther took home the bronze. Read more.

FIND COMPLETE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS RESULTS HERE.

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Ted Ligety wins Giant Slalom to make history at World Championships

Ted Ligety’s winning has become historic, thanks to a victory in Giant Slalom on Friday (Feb. 15) that earned him his third gold at the FIS Alpine Ski World Championships in Schladming, Austria.

The medal means Ligety is the first man to win three golds (he previously won Super G and Super Combined) at a single World Championships in the modern era. He’s also making American ski history, since his four career gold medals at Worlds now ties him with Bode Miller for most overall.

Ligety, who has dominated Giant Slalom this season to the point he has been dubbed “Mr. GS,” locked up Friday’s race after securing a huge 1.30 second lead in the first run. He ultimately won by .81 over Marcel Hirscher and Manfred Moelgg. Norway’s Aksel Lund Svindal just missed a medal. Read more.

FIND COMPLETE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS RESULTS HERE.

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Tessa Worley tops Tina Maze to win gold in women’s Giant Slalom at World Championships

Tessa Worley put together a pair of great runs to win the Women’s Giant Slalom on Thursday (Feb. 14) at the 42nd FIS Alpine Ski World Championships in Schladming, Austria.

The competition was fierce, including Tina Maze, the current leader in World Cup giant slalom standings. But in the end, Worley took the gold by a solid 1.12-second margin. The Slovenian star was left to settle for second, while Austrian Anna Fenninger gave the home country a podium finish in third.

Rising American star Mikaela Shiffrin didn’t get a podium but did make some waves with a strong sixth-place finish. Teammate Julia Mancuso wasn’t so fortunate, finishing outside the top 20. Read more.

FIND COMPLETE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS RESULTS HERE.

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Maria Hoefl-Riesch wins super combined at World Championships, Tina Maze finishes second

Maria Hoefl-Riesch’s victory on Friday (Feb. 8) in super combined at the 42nd FIS Alpine Ski World Championships served as a reminder that she remains one of the world’s best skiers.

Hoefl-Riesch, the overall champ two seasons ago and second so far this year, finished third in the downhill before dominating the field in the slalom, beating second-place finisher Tina Maze of Slovenia by half a second. Nicole Hosp of Austria took bronze, to the delight of the home country fans in Schladming, Austria. Read more.

Julia Mancuso was the top American racer, finishing 13th on the day after a strong slalom run improved on her 19th-place finish in the downhill portion.

FIND COMPLETE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS RESULTS HERE.

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Ted Ligety masters Super G for Gold at World Championships

Ted Ligety

UPDATE: The American ski racer also won Super Combined and Giant Slalom at the World Championships.

Ted Ligety has been dubbed “Mr. GS,” but he was golden in Super G on Wednesday (Feb. 6) , winning at the FIS Alpine Ski World Championships in Schladming, Austria.

The American has dominated Giant Slalom this season, hence the nickname, but his results have continued to improve in Super G, culminating in this big victory. Speaking of surprises, France’s Gauthier DeTessiere finished second after being a last-minute replacement for an injured teammate. Speed star Aksel Lund Svindal took bronze. Read more and see photos.

FIND COMPLETE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS RESULTS HERE.

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Tina Maze wins Super G at Worlds as Lindsey Vonn suffers season-ending knee injury

UPDATE, Feb. 6: Here’s what Lindsey Vonn had to say to her fans via Facebook the day after her crash in the World Championships. The quote.

Feb. 5: Tina Maze continued her spectacular season with a win in Super G at the 42nd FIS Alpine Ski World Championships on Tuesday (Feb. 5) while Lindsey Vonn saw her injury-plagued season ended after she suffered a major knee injury. (Watch video of the crash here.)

The Slovenian star, who is dominating the women’s circuit this season, was able to add a second Worlds gold to her collection by staying focused on a day when snow and fog caused numerous course delays. It wasn’t all bad news for the American team: Julia Mancuso came up with another strong performance on a big platform, racing to third behind Switzerland’s Lara Gut. (Read more.)

For Vonn, it was a painful and disappointing end to a season that saw her hospitalized by an intestinal infection during November. Although she was able to return and win several races, the American took a health break of a couple of weeks to work on the conditioning lost during the illness in the hopes it would help her at Worlds. Now she faces an arduous rehabilitation leading up to the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

FIND COMPLETE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS RESULTS HERE.

Swany Gloves is dedicated to bringing you the best of outdoor adventure. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, enter our Outdoor Adventures Video Contest.