Cuche dominates World Cup ski training

Swiss veteran Didier Cuche showed he was still a force to be reckoned in training here on Tuesday, as he outskied his main rivals for the downhill World Cup trophy. Cuche, 37, has announced he will end his career at the end of the season and fell to second place in the downhill standings in Kvitfjell, Norway, 10 days ago. But after safe runs by both compatriot Beat Feuz and leader and local boy Klaus Kroell, Cuche put in an impressive run, finishing with 1min 50.70sec. Italy's Dominik Paris finished second with 1:51.61, followed by Austrian Hannes Reichelt 0.05 seconds behind. Kroell, who is hoping to secure his first ever crystal globe, only managed 15th place with 1:52.86. Feuz, who is leading the overall World Cup standings, trailed in 20th place at 1:53.61. A fifth downhill World Cup trophy after Schladming would see Cuche match the record of Austria's Franz Klammer. Norway's Aksel Lund Svindal did not finish after suffering a spectacular fall but he was uninjured. The men's training start had to be postponed by half an hour due to fog. On Monday, the women's first downhill training already had to be cancelled due to soft conditions following warm temperatures and rainy weather. A second training was planned for later Tuesday. The end-of-season World Cup finals in Schladming are seen as a dress rehearsal for the Austrian resort, as it prepares to host the biennial ski World Championships next February.