Winter Olympics: Armand Marchant finishes fifth in tightly contested Olympic slalom
At the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, Armand Marchant was unable to convert his outsider status into a medal. The Belgian skier finished fifth in Monday’s slalom event with a time of 1:55.61, exactly 2 seconds behind Olympic champion Loïc Meillard.
Marchant has enjoyed the best season of his career this winter, becoming the first Belgian to win a silver medal in Alpine Skiing World Cup. His recent form positioned him as a potential medal contender heading into the Olympic slalom race.
Starting eighth in the first run, Marchant clocked 57.34 seconds, 1.20 seconds behind leader Atle Lie McGrath. In the second run, however, the Belgian lost ground on his competitors. He posted a time of 58.27, nearly a second slower than his first run, resulting in a fifth place overall in the final standings.
The podium was dominated by traditional alpine skiing nations. Norway’s Henrik Kristoffersen took bronze, Austria’s Fabio Gstrein secured silver and Switzerland’s Loïc Meillard claimed Olympic gold.
Fellow Belgian Sam Maes also competed but failed to finish the first run, as he did last weekend in the giant slalom event. The 27-year-old nevertheless remained upbeat. "I have other goals for the future. There are still Winter Games to come," he said after the race.
PHOTO © Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP
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