“If it works, then it works”: Feller won the Wengen slalom

The Tyrolean, who had already won in Gurgl and Adelboden, prevailed on Sunday in Wengen with a lead of ten hundredths of a second over the Norwegian Atle Lie McGrath. World champion Henrik Kristoffersen (+0.21 seconds) came in third place. Three representatives of the strong Austrian slalom team were in the top ten. Austria won all four slaloms this winter.

Michael Matt (+1.20) improved from 18th to seventh place in the final of the best 30. Fabio Gstrein (+1.26) came eighth, Johannes Strolz (+1.78) finished the race in 15th place. Halftime sixth place Adrian Pertl (+3.42) rattled back to 28th place after a near-failure . In the first round, Adelboden third-placed Dominik Raschner, Joshua Sturm and finally – after a furious start – World Cup debutant Moritz Zudrell were eliminated.

“It’s overwhelming”

“It’s overwhelming. When it works, it works in skiing,” said Feller in the first interview. He thanked McGrath for forcing him to always attack. “If he hadn’t accelerated so much in the first run, I would probably have thought I could take it a little easier,” explained the 31-year-old, who was in third place at halftime. McGrath had been in the lead ahead of Kristoffersen. A week ago in Adelboden, the 23-year-old Norwegian had only finished second behind Feller.

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So he had to “go all in” again, and it was definitely worth it, said Feller, second fastest in the final behind Clement Noel. “I think it’s a great duel for the audience.” Feller also extended his lead in the discipline rankings. There are 153 points between him and the new runner-up McGrath. For Kristoffersen, who says he still hasn’t optimized his setup, it was at least his first podium finish this season.

McGrath: “I’m a member of the Manuel Feller fan club”

McGrath said he was still happy. “It’s the same as in Adelboden. I’m a member of the Manuel Feller fan club, and it’s another gift from me to Manuel,” he said in the ORF interview and laughed. “I think he can return the gift to me in Kitzbühel.”

After his first run, McGrath said that he was extremely concerned about the fall of his compatriot Aleksander Aamodt Kilde the day before. “He’s a good friend and teammate,” he says. “I didn’t sleep that night.” On the descent, Kilde failed to catch the last momentum before the finish and crashed into the safety net at high speed. The young Austrian Gernot Reinstadler had a fatal accident at the same place in 1992.

Matt was pleased with his improvement in the second round. “I have to brutally force myself to choose a really cheeky line because the material simply allows it,” explained the Tyrolean. “Then the momentum develops through the momentum.”

Feller achieved the first victory for an ÖSV athlete in Wengen since Marcel Hirscher’s success in 2018. It was the feverbrunner’s fifth World Cup victory overall. His home race will take place in Kitzbühel in a week. “Now it’s just getting difficult at home, now I’ve put pressure on myself,” he said.