Without stepping on a pair of skis the last two days of the season, Luc Alphand made history.
Kjetil Andre Aamodt's comeback bid fell short Sunday, enabling Alphand to become the first downhiller to win the men's World Cup overall title and the first Frenchman since Jean-Claude Killy in 1968.Alphand built a lead over Aamodt based solely on downhill and super-G results this season, then watched from the finish line Saturday and Sunday as Aamodt closed the deficit but couldn't overtake him.
Aamodt, a four-event skier from Norway who captured the 1994 overall title, trailed Alphand by 70 points entering the men's slalom - the final event of the season. He needed to finish at least second to catch the Frenchman but wound up seventh in a race won by Finn Christian Jagge of Norway.
Alphand, winner of four downhills and two super-Gs this season, concluded the year with 1,130 points compared to Aamodt's 1,096.
"The last three weeks have been very difficult," Alphand said. "This is a great liberation for me. I'm really happy. After 30 years, I think it was time enough for the French to have another name" on the overall trophy.
"I'm the first downhill winner of the overall title. It means a lot to me and to all the downhillers from all the countries. Winning the overall with only two disciplines is very difficult."
Aamodt said he "knew I was about a half second too slow or more. But I'm happy because I skied my best in the second run. Luc is a great skier. He's been winning a lot of races. He deserves the victory. I won only one race."
In the women's slalom, Italy's Lara Magoni posted her first World Cup victory in six seasons on the circuit, tying Sweden's Pernilla Wiberg for first place.
German ace Katja Seizinger had the best slalom finish of her career - third - to earn medals in all four races at these finals. She is the first four-time medalist since the finals went to the current format in 1993.
Aamodt's hopes for the coveted overall crown were diminished when he could do no better than 16th in the first run of the slalom. He was 1.71 seconds off the pace and nearly a full second out of second place after a tentative first run.
He regrouped and had the second-fastest time in the second run of 46.95 seconds for a combined time of 1 minute, 39.01 seconds, but six skiers finished ahead of him.
With racers running in reverse order of their first-run finish, Switzerland's Michael Von Gruenigen slipped ahead of Aamodt at 1:38.90. Then Austria's Mario Reiter was timed in 1:38.49, dropping Aamodt to third and out of contention.
Jagge, who held a first-run lead of .72 seconds, came across in 1:37.94 for his third career victory. Austrian Thomas Stangassinger was second in 1:38.06, and Italy's Alberto Tomba, capping a lackluster season, was third in 1:38.19.
Matt Grosjean of Steamboat Springs, Colo., was 16th in 1:40.08.
Despite a ninth-place finish, Thomas Sykora of Austria captured the season slalom title with 695 points. Stangassinger was second with 670.
In the women's event, Magoni, 28, silver medalist in slalom at the world championships, held a first-run lead of .18 seconds over the surprising Seizinger, who had never finished higher than seventh in the event. Wiberg, this season's overall and slalom champion, stood fifth, .76 seconds off the lead.
Wiberg fashioned a blistering second run of 48.30 seconds, but Magoni stood her ground and came across in 49.06 for an identical combined time of 1:35.77. Seizinger finished in 1:36.31.
"All the races this season, it's been Deborah (Compagnoni), Pernilla, (Claudia) Riegler," Magoni said. "Only I didn't win. I wanted to win today."
Seizinger, the 1996 overall champion, completed a brilliant finals. She tied for second place in Wednesday's downhill, won the super-G on Thursday and was second in the giant slalom on Saturday.
Wiberg ended the season with a World Cup-record 1,960 points, including 770 in slalom. She won five of the nine slalom races this season.
"I feel satisfaction and a little bit relieved that the long season is over," Wiberg said. "I'm looking forward to the next season, but I don't know how I can match this."
New Zealand's Riegler, slowed by injuries to her shoulder and wrist in training, placed ninth in 1:37.72 and hung on to second place in the slalom standings with 418 points. Compagnoni was third with 407.