Mayer Takes Austrian Gold In PyeongChang Super-G

Austrian Matthias Mayer, the Sochi 2014 downhill gold medalist who finished Wednesday's race in a disappointing ninth place, rallied against the odds on Thursday to claim Olympic gold in super-G. In doing so, he ended a Norwegian golden streak in the event that has carried over the past four Games. Starting with bib 15, Mayer bumped Norway's Kjetil Jansrud from the lead, but Jansrud was able to end the day with his second medal of the Games, this time a bronze.

On the fast and open course set, downhill bronze medallist Beat Feuz of Switzerland upgraded his hardware for silver in the super-G. The first two starters in the race, Peter Fill and Mauro Caviezel, failed to complete the course, as did 11 additional competitors. Spectators and athletes alike were greeted by sunny, blue skies throughout the competition.

Mayer said "It was an awesome run. Now I have my second gold medal. It is most special. It's always very tough especially when the races are in such short gap apart.

"We don't know the hills, that always makes us worry, especially in super-G because we only have little training and that makes this medal for me so special."

On winning the silver medal (after getting a bronze in the downhill) Feuz said "Really great. Second medal for these Olympic Games is really nice for me. That's a dream for me. I hope in four years I come back for the gold medal.It was a great race for me. The course was really tough, really fast. It's good for me also (in) downhill."

Ryan Cochran-Siegle (Starksboro, Vt.) was the top finisher in 14th for Team USA in super-G Friday afternoon at the Jeongseon Alpine Centre at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games.

"This was a good day, but having me be the top finisher and no athletes in the top 10 was kind of a bummer – especially when we have had so much success in the past at this event," Cochran-Siegle said.

Jared Goldberg finished 24th. Andrew Weibrecht (Lake Placid, N.Y.), the reigning Olympic silver medalist in the event after taking bronze at the Vancouver 2010 Games, and two-time Olympic gold medalist Ted Ligety (Park City, Utah) both did not finish.

"I knew I was the dark horse coming into super-G, so I needed to take a lot of risks to even have a chance," Ligety said. "I made a dumb mistake at the bottom. My times were good, not in line with a medal position, but in line with what I wanted. Super G is really good training for me for Giant Slalom. It gives me the confidence to arch clean turns at high speeds. I will take how I skied out of today with confidence and move it forward to Sunday (in the giant slalom)."