Switzerland's Didier Cuche, left, shakes hands with downhill champion Michael Walchhofer of Austria. Cuche finished third and American Steven Nyman second.
Bode Miller speaks to a mob of journalists during the 2007 Birds of Prey. Miller took fourth in super-combined and sixth in downhill.
Andrew Weibrecht put his name on the World Cup map, skiing out of the 53rd starting position into 10th place in the downhill race.
The men’s World Cup races at Beaver Creek have a history of playing out crazily, significantly in defiance of the average fortune teller’s predictions. The 2007 Birds of Prey races Nov. 30 through Dec. 3 were no exception.
They began with World Cup overall reigning champion Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway suffering a horrific crash in the downhill training run. Not only did the crash – which occurred at high speed after Svindal caught air and landed on his back, sending him rolling into the fencing and breaking several bones in his face – sideline the favorite during all of the Beaver Creek races, but it appears to have put him out for the season.
Further, Swiss racer Daniel Albrecht, who shined at last year’s world championships in Are, Sweden, usurped everyone for the super-combined win and then again for the coveted gold medal in giant slalom. Albrecht’s countryman, Didier Cuche, also landed on the podium twice, taking third in GS and downhill.
Steven Nyman stole the show for the Americans, finishing second in downhill behind winner Michael Walchhofer of Austria.
The Austrians took over in the super-G race, which was postponed due to heavy snowfall, filling the podium with Hannes Reichelt on top, Mario Scheiber second and Christoph Gruber third.
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The 2007 Birds of Prey World Cup men's ski races at Beaver Creek were, like others before them, full of surprises. Swiss skier Daniel Albrecht walked away with two gold medals, American Steven Nyman landed in second place in the downhill race and the Austrians, as they've been known to do, made their mark in a big way.
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