Sports

Jansrud win shock super-G gold

Norwegian Prime Minister elated at historic win.

Afp February 16, 2014

Norway’s Kjetil Jansrud produced a sensational performance in the Men’s Alpine Skiing Super-G to win an unexpected gold medal. PHOTO: AFP

SOCHI: Norway’s Kjetil Jansrud won a shock gold in the Olympic super-G Sunday as the big guns of alpine skiing again failed to fire.

The 28-year-old Jansrud mastered the challenging course in a time of 1min 18.14sec to claim gold, with American Andrew Weibrecht taking silver. Miller and Jan Hudec of Canada tied for bronze.

“I am floating and feeling great. It hasn’t sunk in yet. I wasn’t nervous at the start but things got a little too exciting when Andrew Weibrecht was going down,” said Jansrud.

Jansrud, who also won bronze in last week’s downhill, was watched by Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg, who hailed him as an “idol”.

Snowboard cross racers stretchered off after crashes

Two competitors in the women’s Olympic snowboard cross event at the Sochi Games were stretchered off after crashing badly in Sunday morning’s seeding races.

Medal hopeful Helene Olafsen from Norway -- the first snowboarder on the course -- was taken to hospital with a knee injury. The other casualty in the seeding run -- where riders compete alone against the clock for a better seeding for the afternoon quarter-finals when there are six athletes racing together -- was American Jacqueline Hernandez.

It was the second time in three days Olafsen, who finished third at last year’s world championships and fourth at the 2010 Vancouver Games, had crashed. She was also carried off on a stretcher on Friday after cutting her forehead in a fall.

“She’s being taken to the local hospital with a knee injury and she will not compete,” a Norwegian team spokesman said.

Russian freestyle skier Maria Komissarova, who fractured her spine in a ski-cross training accident, remains in a stable but serious condition after a satisfactory night, her federation said. President Vladimir Putin late Saturday visited Komissarova, to wish her well.

Published in The Expres Tribune, February 17^th, 2014.

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