Marcel Hirscher Wins World Cup Slalom in Switzerland

Marcel Hirscher won a World Cup slalom in Switzerland on January 12, 2014, taking the lead in the overall and discipline standings.

He beat Andre Myhrer of Sweden by 0.29 seconds.

Hirscher mastered a classic Swiss slope, slicing through the gates on a thrilling run down the steep final slope.

The Austrian two-time defending overall champion took risks, saying "If you give a lot, you can win a lot."

This win marked Hirscher's fourth victory of the season, with 22 career World Cup victories, including 12 in slalom.

He leads Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway by 23 points in the overall standings.

Hirscher also took the discipline standings lead from teammate Mario Matt.

Hirscher's next race is the slalom at nearby Wengen on January 19, 2014.

The three-race Wengen meeting includes the Lauberhorn downhill on January 18, 2014.

Teenager Henrik Kristoffersen of Norway was third, trailing 0.66 behind Hirscher's combined two-run time of 1 minute, 49.75 seconds.

Felix Neureuther of Germany lost his unbeaten record in 2014 by straddling a gate when poised to challenge Hirscher's time.

Ted Ligety of the United States retained a distant third place overall despite skiing out in the second run.

Bode Miller placed outside the top-30 in the morning and did not qualify for a second run.

David Chodounsky of the U.S. was eighth, 1.70 behind Hirscher.

The host Switzerland team offered little for an enthusiastic crowd of 12,000 spectators on a sunny day.

Hirscher praised the crowd, saying "The crowd is one of the most fair on the World Cup tour.