Hirscher avoids rut

Well behind after the downhill, Marcel Hirscher of Austria doubted he had much of a chance. He couldn’t have been more mistaken. Hirscher made up a staggering 3.16 seconds in the slalom portion of the Alpine combined to win the gold medal at the world championships in Beaver Creek, Colorado, on Sunday. Downhill leader Kjetil Jansrud of Norway held on for silver. Starting first in the afternoon slalom session, Hirscher took advantage of a rut-free course to finish in a combined time of 2 minutes, 36.10 seconds. Jansrud, the 30th skier to go and with big grooves on the hill, wound up 0.19 seconds back. American Ted Ligety, the defending champion, earned bronze after going right after Hirscher, when the course was still fresh. – Associated Press