The most important thing in brief: In the fight for the overall Alpine World Cup, Mikaela Shiffrin has once again increased her lead over the German ski racer Emma Aicher. Thanks to her eighth slalom victory this winter, the American is now 140 points ahead of her pursuer. Aicher came in a strong second in Are, 0.94 seconds behind, only losing 20 points. For the 22-year-old, it was the best World Cup placement in the slalom of her career.

There are still four races on the program in the upcoming final week in Lillehammer, Norway. Technology specialist Shiffrin is also likely to consider starting in the speed races. Otherwise, all-rounder Aicher would have a better chance of making up for the deficit and becoming the first German to win the overall World Cup since Maria Höfl-Riesch in 2010/11.

Final score

1. Shiffrin (USA) 1:43.35

2. Aicher (Germany) +0.94

3. Holdener (Switzerland) +1.00

4th Troop (Austria) +1.09

15. Dürr (Germany) +2.50

Slalom women, 2nd round in the ticker log

1:21 p.m. – Mikaela Shiffrin (USA): Shiffrin doesn’t show any weakness. She meanders her way through the gates with ease and playfulness; only minimal uncleanliness can be seen. She crossed the finish line 94 hundredths ahead of Aicher. This is a different ski world in which the American travels.

1:17 p.m. – Emma Aicher (Germany): But now it applies to Emma Aicher. She makes a technical mistake in the middle section, but corrects it immediately. She fights back with a tight, direct line and takes the lead by six hundredths. Very strong! Now only Shiffrin is at the top.

1:15 p.m. – Katharina Troupe (Austria): The team already had problems at the first gates and was pushed backwards a few times in the middle section. The Austrian is fighting but can no longer make up for her mistakes. Nine hundredths behind, she is in second place behind Holdener.

1:14 p.m. – Wendy Holdener (Switzerland): Holdener with an announcement towards the podium. The Swiss chooses a super direct line, has no problems at the transition and stays in rhythm. In the end she is 83 hundredths ahead of Moltzan.

1:12 p.m. – Cornelia Öhlund (Sweden): The local hero starts off like fireworks, driven by the home fans. But Öhlund also has problems at the transition and leans too far inwards. She falls back and, to the disappointment of the spectators, only finishes in third place.

1:10 p.m. – Lara Colturi (Albania): The Albanian shows a solid run, but then overexcites during a transition and has to correct. In doing so, she loses the time she would have needed to lead. She is currently third, 26 hundredths behind Moltzan.

1:08 p.m. – Paula Moltzan (USA): At the top, Moltzan extends his lead over Germane, the ride is very strong up to the middle section. But then the American makes it exciting; she stands too hard on the edges during some turns. But it’s enough for Moltzan, she has a wafer-thin lead of two hundredths.

1:07 p.m. – Zrinka Ljutic (Croatia): The journey from Ljutic doesn’t last long, the Croatian threads in at the top and is eliminated.

1:06 p.m. – Camille Rast (Switzerland): The Swiss woman, who has been so strong in slalom this season, cannot cope in Are today. Her lead over the Latvian Germane, who is currently in the lead, is shrinking more and more, and she also makes a mistake when entering the steep slope. Rast falls back to third place.

1:02 p.m. – Anna Swenn Larsson (Sweden): The Swede Larsson attacks and wants to make up time. She does this well at first, until she doesn’t get one or two swings in the middle section optimally. So she is only fifth, and Larsson also loses positions compared to the first run.

1 p.m. – Lena Dürr (Germany): Before the top ten runners from the first round complete the second round, it is Lena Dürr’s turn. Your journey looks much smoother, but there are still a few errors. In the end she is 65 seconds behind, so she falls further behind. Only sixth place.

Slalom women, interim results after the first round

1. Mikaela Shiffrin (USA) 50.22

2. Emma Aicher (Germany) +0.51

3. Katharina Troupe (Austria) +0.57

4. Wendy Holdener (Switzerland) +0.70

5. Cornelia Öhlund (Sweden) +0.86

11. Lena Dürr (Germany) +1.45

9.50 a.m. – Katharina Huber (Austria): The Austrian Huber has problems at the first gates, then she loses control in the middle section and is the first runner to be eliminated.

9.49 a.m. – Zrinka Ljutic (Croatia): The Croatian also has problems with the course, but Ljutic does better than Dürr before her. “Only” 1.22 seconds behind Shiffrin means eighth place.

9.48 a.m. – Lena Dürr (Germany): Disappointment for Dürr. She actually likes the slope in Are, but today things aren’t going as well as she had hoped. Dürr swings too far a few times and in the end she is 1.45 seconds behind.

9.46 a.m. – Marion Chevrier (France): Mixed ride from Chevrier, who couldn’t cope with the course at all and ended up in 11th place, almost two seconds behind.

9.45 a.m. – Cornelia Öhlund (Sweden): The Swede Öhlund also does well. It’s not quite enough to be at the front, but Öhlund can be happy with fifth place for now.

9.43 a.m. – Emma Aicher (Germany): But now Emma Aicher! After a good start, she can keep up with Shiffrin’s time. Before the flat section she is a little late and loses a little speed. Nevertheless, it is a top ride; she is in second position, half a second behind Shiffrin. A good starting point for the second round.

9.42 a.m. – Melanie Meillard (Switzerland): Meillard’s run is also messed up. She doesn’t seem lively and makes a lot of mistakes. At the finish she is over two seconds behind and looks very disappointed.

9.40 a.m. – Sara Hector (Sweden): Not a good ride from Hector, who doesn’t get through the course cleanly and is at the back of the field, 1.87 seconds behind Shiffrin.

9:39 a.m. – Paula Moltzan (USA): Once again the slalom women cannot keep up with dominator Mikaela Shiffrin. Not even Moltzan, who doesn’t do it badly by any means, but does make a few noises. She finished fifth, more than a second behind her teammate.

9.37 a.m. – Wendy Holdener (Switzerland): Holdener copes better with the course. The Swiss is on course for second place, but after a small technical error in the middle section she cannot displace Troupe. Third place for Holdener for the first time.

9:36 a.m. – Anna Swenn Larsson (Sweden): The Swede Larsson also takes too many risks and is almost carried away when entering the steep slope. That took a lot of time, and she is at the bottom of the rankings, 1.42 seconds behind.

9.35 a.m. – Camille Rast (Switzerland): The Swiss woman Rast doesn’t get through the forest of poles so smoothly; the ride is bumpy in the upper part. The gap adds up to more than a second at the finish.

9:34 a.m. – Mikael Shiffrin (USA): Shiffrin is the slalom queen of the World Cup and she shows that once again in Are. The American completes the course with ease and takes the lead by over half a second.

9:31 a.m. – Lara Colturi (Albania): Colturi is also on the direct line. The pace is not as high as in troupe, after a small technical error in the middle section she is half a second behind the Austrian.

9.30 a.m. – Katharina Troupe (Austria): The Austrian troop opens the Are slalom. She chooses an aggressive, direct line and is visually clean. The first benchmark time: 50.79.

Ski racer Emma Aicher has increased the pressure on leader Mikaela Shiffrin in the fight for the overall World Cup. Aicher took fourth place in the giant slalom in Are, while the American still managed to come fifth thanks to a catch-up effort. As a result, the German reduced the gap to her rival by five points and is now only 120 points behind Shiffrin.

Including the slalom on Sunday (9.30 a.m./ARD and Eurosport), there are still five races left – and the fight for the overall World Cup remains open. Especially in the speed races, all-rounder Aicher is likely to have hopes of overtaking her technically adept competitor and crowning her season. The 22-year-old also attracted attention this season at the Olympic Games in Cortina d’Ampezzo when she won silver twice.