Lucas Pinheiro Braathen Leads Men’s Giant Slalom
Brazil’s Lucas Pinheiro Braathen moved to the brink of a historic Winter Olympic gold medal after dominating the first run of the men’s giant slalom on Saturday at the Milano Cortina Games.
No athlete representing a South American nation has ever won a Winter Olympic medal, but the Norway-born 25-year-old put himself in prime position to change that. Starting first among 81 competitors, Braathen delivered a clean and fluid run through 52 gates on the softened Stelvio course, stopping the clock at 1:13.92.
He finished 0.95 seconds clear of Switzerland’s reigning Olympic champion Marco Odermatt, who was the only skier to come within a second and a half of the leader. Odermatt’s deficit leaves him with significant ground to make up in the decisive second run later in the day.
Nazarov opens campaign for Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan’s Medet Nazarov also began his Olympic campaign in the giant slalom. The Uzbek skier recorded a time of 1:25.75 in the first run.
The final run is scheduled for 5:30 pm Tashkent time, when the overall standings will be decided.
Kursiv also reports that Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Shaidorov delivered one of the biggest surprises in Olympic figure skating history, capturing gold at the Milano Cortina Games.
