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Ivica Kostelić (CRO), Bode Miller (USA), Silvan Zurbriggen (SUI)
Ivica Kostelić (CRO)
Ivica Kostelić (CRO)
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Racing: Kostelić delighted with Olympic silver
His goal was a medal. And that can now be added to his trophy collection after today. Ivica Kostelić (CRO) won the silver medal in the Olympic Super Combined in Whistler Mountain (CAN). It is the first medal for him and his equipment provider Fischer in the Alpine disciplines at the Games. His happiness knows no bounds: "It's fantastic, simply incredible! Seeing as I don't have any children yet, I can say that this is the biggest thing that has ever happened to me!"
Favourite under a lot of pressure
Being a favourite had put Kostelić under quite a lot of pressure in the run-up to the race: "Going into a race as a medal favourite is much more difficult than just being an outsider." It came as no surprise that he was nervous before the race.
He sowed the seeds of success in the technically demanding Downhill which saw him trailing Svindal (NOR) by only 1.05 seconds, giving him a good starting position for the Slalom. "When I crossed the finish line in the Slalom I wasn't sure whether it would be enough for a medal. I didn't go all out in the race. You can make a mistake before you know it. As soon as Silvan Zurbriggen (SUI) crossed the line seven hundredths of a second behind me, I almost had a heart attack. I knew that was it – I've got a medal!"
Success with a difficult Slalom
Kostelić's father was also visibly moved. "I've never seen my father so happy," says the silver medallist, delighted by his family's reaction. His father played a part in helping Kostelić make it to the podium. The Slalom course that he set was indeed somewhat more difficult than usual in the Combined Slalom. "If the run had been too easy there's no way the technical specialists would have had a chance here. We have trained such gate combinations often, of course. But it was my performance in the Downhill that paved the way to my success," says Kostelić, analysing the race.
More about Ivica KosteliĆ
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