Ramon Zenhausern wins in Chamonix as Clement Noel and Dave Ryding crash out; AJ Ginnis takes second spot

Ramon Zenhausern edged ahead of surprise contender AJ Ginnis to win the Chamonix slalom.

For Zenhausern it was his fifth World Cup victory and his first since winning gold at Alta Badia in December 2020, finishing in a time of 1:42.94.

The Swiss skier struggled with shoulder and back injuries last season, but his win in France will give him great confidence heading into this month’s World Championships.

“It was amazing,” Zenhausern said afterwards.

“The second run was a tricky one. It was difficult and I managed to ski in a flow and it is just amazing.

“The World Championships begins from zero so I enjoy now the moment, the World Championships is in two weeks before I arrive for the moment.”

Ginnis, who was wearing bib 45, finished 1.02 seconds behind in second and ahead of Zenhausern’s compatriot Daniel Yule who climbed onto the podium, 1.06 seconds behind the winner.

For Ginnis it was a career-best result since he finished in 11th at Flachau two years ago.

Ginnis looked on course for a remarkable victory after a fine second run. He finished in 23rd after the first heat only to then be bettered by Zenhausern.

Five of the top ten from the first heat went out, including Olympic champion Clement Noel, who slid off-piste before straddling a gate after recording the fastest time in the first run.

Great Britain’s Dave Ryding and Laurie Taylor both qualified for the second run, coming ninth and 30th respectively.

Taylor, who was wearing bib 56, came in 23rd on the second run while Ryding produced a no result.

In the World Cup standings, Norway’s Lucas Braathen – who skipped the race to recover from appendix surgery – remains in first place.

Yule’s third-placed finish sees him leapfrog Henrik Kristoffersen – who straddled a gate – into second, 36 points behind Braathen.

None of the top overall skiers participated or scored points in Chamonix. Marco Odermatt’s 313-point lead on Aleksander Aamodt Kilde remains the same.

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