SKIING / WORLD CUP AT VAIL, COLO. : From 13th to First for Aamodt

Those who had considered Alberto Tomba’s recent Olympic run to the slalom silver the greatest comeback in ski racing now have to give second thought to a second run by Norway’s Kjetil Andre Aamodt.

Already with nothing left to prove at age 22, Aamodt stole some of the historic luster from La Bomba on Saturday, striking from the 13th second-run position to steal the giant slalom at the World Cup Finals.

Aamodt’s second run, 0.52 seconds faster than the field, was enough for a two-run winning time of 2:25.62. Christian Mayer of Austria was second, Switzerland’s Steve Locher third.

So much for Tomba’s feat standing in time. Only three weeks ago at Lillehammer, it was Tomba who, from the 12th second-run position, unleashed a break-neck second run that vaulted the Italian great to the Olympic silver.

It was Aamodt who opened the way for Tomba to win the silver. The Norwegian had the second-fastest first run, but went off course on his second.

As Aamodt stood at the start gate before his second run Saturday, 1.14 seconds behind the pace-setting time of Sweden’s Fredrik Nyberg, he remembered Tomba’s feat.

“But I didn’t think I’d be able to do it,” he said.

What inspires Aamodt is the stuff of legends. He already had clinched the men’s World Cup overall title and had no real incentive to muster a strike after his poor first run.

“I was tired, I thought it was going to be another bad day,” he said. “But then I decided to go for it.”

As Tomba needed Aamodt to fall in the Olympics, Aamodt needed a fall guy and found one in Nyberg, who held a commanding lead after the morning run.

From the bottom, Aamodt stood and watched his two-run time survive 11 skiers before Nyberg, seeded No. 1, broke the gate and posted a time 0.66 faster than Aamodt’s after the first interval.

Then, Nyberg crashed.

“It’s part of the game,” Aamodt said.

The blunder not only cost Nyberg the race, but also the GS World Cup title had he won. Instead, Austria’s Mayer took the title by default.

Before his 23rd birthday, Aamodt has claimed five Olympic medals, two World championships, three World Cup titles and one overall championship.

Saturday, he added a little myth to his collection.

There was not nearly the drama in the women’s GS, won by Martina Ertl of Germany, who defeated Switzerland’s Vreni Schneider by 0.38, with Anne Berge of Norway taking third.

The race promised much more. Italy’s Deborah Compagnoni was the only skier with a chance to catch Austria’s Anita Wachter for the GS title. But when Compagnoni went off course early in the morning run, it clinched the title for Wachter without her having to race.

Wachter did, and finished fourth in the GS.

Schneider also clinched her second World Cup overall without leaving the gate. Her title was secured when Sweden’s Pernilla Wiberg, the only skier with a mathematical chance to catch Schneider, could not make the start because of rib injuries suffered in Wednesday’s downhill.

Eva Twardokens, the top U.S. skier, was third after the first run, but made a costly mistake in the second and fell to sixth.

The finish was respectable, given how much time she lost at the top when she had to brake to make a gate.

“At that point, I was contemplating whether I should stop,” Twardokens said. “I felt it was that bad of a mistake. But I’m glad I stayed in.”

Heidi Voelker, the other U.S. entry, finished 12th.

World Cup Notes

Because he qualified based on overall World Cup points, Tommy Moe entered Saturday’s GS, but went off course in his first run. Paul Casey Puckett, the only other American who qualified, finished 17th. . . . Italy’s Alberto Tomba was just another racer, finishing 14th. He is, however, the favorite in today’s slalom. . . . Two Americans finished among the top 10 in the final GS standings. Heidi Voelker was seventh, Eva Twardokens ninth.