Robinson skis ‘smart’ to win giant slalom

Queenstown star Alice Robinson continued her fine form with victory at the Winter Games yesterday.

Robinson charged to victory in the first FIS Australia New Zealand Cup giant slalom race.

"I feel like I skied smart and solid for the conditions," Robinson said.

"It’s so nice to race at home at Coronet Peak and have my friends and family here. I enjoy having this preseason warm-up race. It’s good to go through the motions and it’s special to be at home and sleep in my own bed."

Thirty-four skiers representing 14 nations competed on The Hurdle at Coronet Peak.

The giant slalom course differed slightly from previous editions of Winter Games NZ, as the athletes started higher up at the top of the Coronet Express on the M1 with incredible views across the Wakatipu Basin from the start gate.

This higher start meant the athletes came in at pace to the big left-hand bend that launched them on to the formidable Hurdle, widely recognised as one of the steepest giant slalom slopes in the southern hemisphere.

Robinson, in bib No 4, attacked the course and put down a blistering first run, taking the lead by 0.92sec. Australia’s Madison Hoffman was sitting in second place with 17-year-old Romy Ertl, of Germany, third.

Robinson made quick work of run two, charging down the course and extending her lead, sealing the win by 1.67sec.

Ertl put her foot on the gas for her second run, skiing into second place overall, and Hoffman was third.

Robinson was impressed with the competition, particularly from Ertl, who put the pressure on the 10-time world cup podium finisher.

The Coronet Peak race crew worked exceptionally hard to prepare the course to ensure the best possible surface for the women.

The men were also scheduled to race yesterday, but with challenging snow conditions pushing out the schedule after the first women’s run, the priority was to get the women’s second run away.

Winter Games chief executive Martin Toomey said five days had been set aside for four days of racing, and it was a matter of fitting things in depending on snow conditions.

"We’ve had a pretty warm spell come through, so it’s meant it’s hard for the course to set up as hard as we’d like it to," Toomey said.

"With an athlete welfare lens on, you can only run races when they’re going that hard, when the conditions are absolutely perfect."

If the snow was soft, there was a risk of ending up with "big ruts" on the course, Toomey said.

"And if you hit a rut, you can get thrown. You know, if you’re skiing at over 100kmh, that doesn’t look good."

The Winter Games alpine skiing programme continues today with another FIS ANC giant slalom race down The Hurdle.