Miller's woes continue with disqualification

He hit a slalom gate in a World Cup race.
WENGEN, Switzerland (AP) -- Bode Miller hit the trifecta: an apology, a disqualification, an absence.
One day after he was humbled for comments about drinking and racing, Miller was disqualified near the end of a World Cup race Friday.
The champion skier failed to get the result reversed and later skipped a ceremony in town for the downhill draw for today's race.
"It just never stops with him," World Cup race director Guenther Hujara said.
The call
Miller, the defending overall champion, was disqualified just yards from the finish of a slalom, allowing Austria's Benjamin Raich to win a super-combi and pad his lead in the overall standings.
The super-combi, a new version of the traditional combined, adds the times from a shortened downhill in the morning to a slalom leg a few hours later.
Norway's Kjetil Andre Aamodt was second and Italy's Peter Fill was third for his first top-three finish. The top American was Steven Nyman, 19th.
Miller was second fastest in the morning's downhill and appeared to have won after the slalom, leading Raich by 1.11 seconds. But the New Hampshire skier was disqualified for straddling a gate near the end.
Miller was unable to get his disqualification changed after speaking with Hujara -- and his problems didn't stop there.
Disappoints fans
He skipped the mandatory downhill bib draw ceremony in the town square, letting down thousands of fans hoping to catch a glimpse of him. It was unclear why he was absent; no other skier missed the draw.
Miller, who often complains of his sponsor and media duties, was supposed to start 27th but will now be the 30th skier out.
Miller, who had delivered his best slalom performance in eight months, said that while the front part of his right ski did hit the flattened gate, his foot never crossed over the pole.
"My ski definitely hit the gate but it [the gate] went down the middle of the ski and my foot was on the right side of it," Miller said, explaining why he completed his run even though International Ski Federation rules state skiers must abandon a race if they miss a gate to preserve the course. "The tip of my ski went over it but I didn't hook it completely."
The rule
Article 661.4.1 of the ski rules states that a gate has been passed correctly when both the competitor's ski tips and both feet have passed across the gate line. The gate line in slalom is the imaginary shortest line between the turning pole and the outside pole. In other words, both skis must be in between the two poles.
"Bode raises the question, but there is not a question," Hujara said. "There was not a big discussion or a fight. It's very clear that the ski tip has to cross the gate line, and it's more than obvious that he was straddling the gate."
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