Rey Bellet victorious in Lenzerheide

Corinne Rey Bellet (centre) shares the podium with Melanie Suchet (left) and Hilde Gerg Keystone

The Swiss skier, Corinne Rey Bellet, has stormed to snow on home turf winning the women’s World Cup downhill event in Lenzerheide in canton Graubünden.

The 29-year old completed the shortened Scalottas course in 1”18’65, finishing a full half second ahead of her French rival, Melanie Suchet.

Germany’s Hilde Gerg came in third hauling herself up onto the podium after her fourth place finish in Salt Lake City.

Saturday’s first place finish is the third downhill World Cup win of Rey Bellet’s career and her first this season.

She adds the Lenzerheide win to downhill victories in Altenmarkt, Austria in 2000 and St Anton, Austria in 1999. She also has two super G wins to her name bringing her tally to five.

Montillet finishes eighth

The Olympic champion, Carole Montillet of France, had to make do with eighth place, finishing in a time of 1″19’75.

Germany’s Renate Goetschl, who was hotly tipped to win the World Cup aggregate, had a bad run and saw her chances of winning slip away.

She fell half way down the course, fracturing her fibula and tearing ligaments in her left knee.

She was later taken to the Schruns clinic for treatment.

Her fall cleared the way for Italy’s Isolde Kostner to take the World Cup title with 546 points, even thought there is still one more downhill race to go.

Men in Kvitfjell

The men were also in action on Saturday in the World Cup downhill event in Kvitfjell, Norway, where Austria’s Hannes Trinkl took the top podium spot

Trinkl finished in 1”27’15, closely followed by France’s Claude Cretier.

Switzerland’s Franco Cavegn sped down the course to finish third in 1”27’57, but he had to share his podium place with the Italian, Kristian Ghedina, who clocked the same time.

Swiss skiers also figured among the top ten with Bruno Kernen coming in seventh and Didier Cuche finishing eighth.

swissinfo with agencies