Norwegian Kjetil Jansrud added the downhill crystal globe to his super-G title after victory in the season-ending finals in Meribel on Wednesday.
Jansrud clocked 1min 40.86sec down the French resort’s 3km-long Roc de Fer piste in brilliant sunshine to amass 100 points for the win which took him clear atop the downhill standings for the season on 605pts.
The 29-year-old Norwegian, who clocked a top speed of 127kph, went into the race with a slim 20-point advantage over closest rival Hannes Reichelt, but the Austrian could only finish 10th, 0.80sec off Jansrud’s pace.
Completing the podium were Swiss veteran Didier Defago, the 38-year-old clocking 1:41.10 in his last World Cup race before retirement, and Austrian Georg Streitberger (+0.31).
Jansrud’s victory was also the perfect boost in his battle with Austrian Marcel Hirscher for the most sought-after crystal globe – for the skier who tops the overall standings.
Technical specialist Hirscher, who did not make the top 25 skiers to race the downhill, currently has 1,248pts, with Jansrud now up to 1,184.
Jansrud will fancy his chances to cut that lead in Thursday’s super-G scheduled for Thursday, with Hirscher likely to come to the fore in the giant slalom on Saturday and the potentially title-deciding slalom on Sunday.