Argentine skier Cristian Javier Simari Birkner was the 75th and final skier on the start list for Wednesday’s World Cup slalom in Madonna di Campiglio, Italy.
A course worker must have thought the race had only 74.
The worker was near a flag on the course but scrambled away after realizing Simari Birkner was approaching. The damage was already done, as a distracted Simari Birkner pulled up and, with a look of desolation, abandoned his run.
The race winner was Switzerland’s Daniel Yule, who has won only twice on the World Cup circuit, both times on this slope and in back-to-back years. Yule has been on the podium one other time this season, taking third in November in Levi, Finland.
Norway’s Henrik Kristoffersen finished second to take the lead in the World Cup slalom standings and move up to third overall. France’s Clement Noel placed third and stands just behind Kristoffersen in the slalom standings.
Alexis Pinturault moved into the overall World Cup lead, finishing fifth.
Simari Birkner, 39, has been a fixture in international skiing for years, competing in World Cup races since 1998. Wednesday’s race, though, was his first World Cup event of the season. His career-best World Cup finish is 26th in a super combined event in 2012 in Sochi. His only other top-30 World Cup finish was 29th in the same event in Kitzbuehel, Austria. He has never reached the final run of a World Cup in slalom or giant slalom.
But he has fared better in Olympic and world championship competition, with a career best of 17th in each. He was 17th in the 2002 Olympic slalom and has six top-30 Olympic finishes, two each in the slalom, giant slalom and combined. He has twice finished 17th in world championships — the 2003 giant slalom and the 2007 slalom — and has 11 top-30s.
Simari Birkner has three younger sisters — Maria Belen, Macarena and Angelica — who also compete, with similar results.
A course worker also was in the way earlier this season in Alta Badia, Italy, where Croatia’s Filip Zubcic had to swerve to avoid someone at the finish line as he finished 10th in a giant slalom.
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