Toronto, Canada – By Manuele Lang
HAUS IM ENNSTAL, Austria (Reuters) - Lindsey Vonn, despite skiing with an injured hand, continued her clean sweep of World Cup downhills this season when she won her third in succession on Friday.
There had been doubts about the American world champion's form after she hurt her hand in a crash in Lienz two weeks ago but she set the record straight with a winning time of one minute 38.84 seconds.
"I really needed a race like this. After the hard days I've been through, victory was necessary," said the American, who has won five back-to-back super-Gs in the past, but never three downhills.
Second place went to Sweden's Anja Paerson, who finished 0.35 seconds off the pace for her first podium of the season.
The 2004 and 2005 World Cup queen was just 0.04 seconds faster than Maria Riesch, whose third spot was not enough for the German to keep the overall World Cup lead.
Riesch, winner of a downhill and a super-G in Haus six years ago, is now 35 points behind Vonn overall, but confirmed her great form in speed events this winter with her third downhill podium.
It was the American's 26th World Cup win, her 15th in a downhill and her fourth this season. The winner of both Lake Louise downhills last month, Vonn also dominated a super-combined in Val d'Isere.
"It's never easy to go through what I've been through even if I'd been there before," said Vonn, who raced with a splint on her thumb at the world championships last year after a freak accident with a bottle of champagne.
"But I knew I wouldn't need to use my arm so much in a downhill. Now this is a great start to the sort of weekends I love."
Friday's race replaced a downhill called off in the French resort on the same weekend.
A second downhill is being held in Haus on Saturday and a super-G completes the weekend program.
Austrian Maria Holaus fractured her right ankle while warming up for the race, the Austrian team announced.
The super-G specialist, winner of a World Cup race in Cortina d'Ampezzo in 2008, underwent surgery in Schladming later in the day.
(Editing by Clare Fallon)
