Mancuso returns to ski racing
By Sean Higgins, Ski Racing
It was an interesting weekend of racing in St. Moritz, Switzerland, to say the least. Weather forced the cancellation of two out of the three days of women’s World Cup action with a lone super-G from a lowered start taking place on Saturday.
One could say the real winner of the weekend was the infamous “Maloja Snake.” The notorious weather phenomenon is caused by warm air rising up the nearby mountains and forming a thick layer of low-lying fog that winds its way through the St. Moritz valley. It caused more than a few problems for racers over the three days of action.
Friday’s alpine combined saw the much-anticipated return of America’s most decorated female Olympic skier, Julia Mancuso, but after morning weather forced organizers to flip the script and run the slalom portion first, the fog failed to clear in time for the afternoon super-G run. The day was unfortunately scrapped after the slalom run with Mikaela Shiffrin leading and Squaw Valley’s Mancuso feeling out her race legs.