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Ciccone holds off Mancuso for GS title

Daily Staff Report
AP photo Caitlin Ciccone, of Bethlehem, N.H., hits a gate en route to winning the women's giant slalom at the U.S. Alpine Championships,Wednesday.
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SUGARLOAF, Maine – Unheralded Caitlin Ciccone, who shifted her emphasis to running gates this season, laid down the fastest second run Wednesday to hold off Olympic champion Julia Mancuso and win the giant slalom title at the 2006 TD Banknorth U.S. Alpine Championships.In collecting the first U.S. title of her career, Ciccone had a two-run time of 2 minutes, 17.96 seconds to top Mancuso by 0.14. Newly crowned super-G champion Stacey Cook took the bronze medal in 2:18.24. First place is worth $3,000 with $1,500 for the silver medal and $750 for third place.Ciccone, 21, and Cook, 21, are first-time U.S. champs while 22-year-old Mancuso, who had been the defending GS gold medalist, has seven titles and has been on the podium at nationals in 15 of her last 16 races. In addition, slalom gold medalist Kaylin Richardson (Edina, MN) took her first U.S. championship on Sugarloaf’s sunny Narrow Gauge/Crib Works racing run.”I just went out there and went for it,” said Ciccone, who skied for the Franconia (NH) Ski Club and Burke Mountain Academy (VT) before making the U.S. Ski Team. “When I’m just thinking about my skiing, I’m okay … and I was confident. I wanted to do it.”Ciccone was second in the 2006 NorAm super-G standings – assuring her of her first World Cup starts next winter – and third in slalom, but only 11th in GS points.”I trained well in GS this year but had bad luck, but I wanted to ski more tech [slalom, GS],” Ciccone said. “I put that on myself. I’ve done a lot of speed (downhill, super G), but I decided have it in tech, so I talked with my coaches and said I wanted to do it.”

So, does she consider herself a tech skier? “I’m an all-eventer … and people know it now.”Mancuso led Ciccone by .25 in the first run with Cook another .06 off the pace. However, as she approached the final run of her season, Mancuso said she just couldn’t get the “Go fast!” message from her head to the rest of her body.”I was lightheaded in the start,” Mancuso said. “I had two fine runs, didn’t make any big mistakes…”When Ciccone laughingly suggested Mancuso “threw ’em sideways at the finish” (i.e., purposely slowed to give her the win), Mancuso just shook her head, as if to say “not true.””I wanted to (ski fast) in the start. My head was there but my body wasn’t. I couldn’t get it to cooperate on my last run.”Mancuso: “I needed inspiration”Mancuso said she held back in a couple of places to ensure she finished her run but she had no gas in her tank at the end.”I needed inspiration,” she said with grin. “Watching the girls struggle and struggle on the World Cup – it’s really fun to come back and get beat at the nationals. I’m the only girl making second run in the World Cup in GS, most of the races, 80 percent of the races.”So, for me to come back and have two decent runs, I had no major mistakes, and get beat … I think it’s a really positive thing for them to look at. They are good skiers, and they can be up there with me in the World Cup,” the Olympic champ said.

Ciccone said she would race in the Super Series events at Lutsen, Minn., while Mancuso said she’s done.Ciccone’s victory was good for the East in the Tom Garner Regions Cup tally, but Mancuso and Cook helped the West keep the East at arm’s length and win by 17 points. West skiers, based on the World Cup points breakdown for the top 30, had 2,991 points to 2,174 for the East. Rocky/Central Region, with three big guns – Caroline Lalive, Sarah Schleper and Kristina Koznick – out with injury – plus Lindsey Kildow missing super G and the events after a crash in downhill, never had a chance to contend.2006 U.S. ALPINE CHAMPIONSHIPSSugarloaf, ME – March 29Women’s Giant Slalom1. Caitlin Ciccone, Bethlehem, N.H., 2:17.96



2. Julia Mancuso, Olympic Valley, Calif., 2:18.103. Stacey Cook, Truckee, Calif., 2:18.244. Megan McJames, Park City, Utah, 2:18.645. Libby Ludlow, Bellevue, Wash., 2:19.696. Lauren Ross, Stowe, Vt., 2:19.987. Jenny Lathrop, North Conway, N.H., 2:22.998. Laurel Carter, Norwich, Vt., 2:23.109. Megan Hughes, Killngton, Vt., 2:23.7210. Abbi Lathrop, North Conway, N.H., 2:24.38Vail, Colorado


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