Ligety finishes third in slalom

It was his career-best finish and capped a superb weekend for the Americans.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
BEAVER CREEK, Colo. -- After two days of the Bode & amp; Daron Show, Ted Ligety gave a glimpse of what the new generation of U.S. skiers can do.
Making the most of an aggressive approach on a tricky slope that got the best of reigning overall champion Bode Miller and many others, Ligety finished a career-best third Sunday in a World Cup slalom won by Giorgio Rocca of Italy.
The 21-year-old from Park City, Utah, capped a superb weekend for the American team, perhaps an indication of what to expect at the Turin Olympics in February. Veterans Daron Rahlves and Miller were first and second in Friday's downhill, then reversed that order in Saturday's giant slalom, where Erik Schlopy was fourth despite breaking his left hand.
"Seeing Bode and Daron go 1-2 both days, and seeing Erik Schlopy get fourth as well, is awesome. Today, unfortunately, Bode went out, and I thought I'd carry the torch," Ligety said, his bronze medal dangling from his neck. "It's a great accomplishment to have a podium pretty much every day here."
Austrians sweep super-G
LAKE LOUISE, Alberta -- Austrian power and American depth were on display on the final chilly day of women's World Cup skiing at Lake Louise.
Austrians swept the top three spots and U.S. skiers had five of the 14 best performances Sunday in the first women's super-G of the season.
Alexandra Meissnitzer earned her 14th career World Cup victory in 1 minute, 21.73 seconds. Andrea Fischbacher was one-tenth of a second back at 1:21.83. Michaela Dorfmeister, in her final race on a hill where she enjoyed great success, was third at 1:22.56.
The Austrian trio is a mix of veteran experience and rising talent. Meissnitzer and Dorfmeister are 32.
"We are now probably the older ones," Meissnitzer said, "but we are still able to ski fast."
Meissnitzer won at Lake Louise in 1999, but the next year, when she returned, she sustained a serious knee injury, the first of a series of problems that plagued her for the next three years.
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