Koznick Earns First World Cup Victory

Kristina Koznick, who grew up skiing at night in Minnesota, won a slalom Thursday night for the first World Cup victory of her career and the first win this season for the United States.

She had two second-place finishes earlier this season. This time, she held off Hilde Gerg of Germany to win by 0.31 seconds.

Koznick, second behind Gerg after the opening run, had a two-run total of 1 minute, 29.46 seconds in the last women’s gate race before the Nagano Olympics.

Koznick became the first American slalom winner on the tour since 1992, when Julie Parisien prevailed at Park City, Utah.