Alpine skiing: Ligety wins Beaver Creek giant slalom

BEAVER CREEK, Colorado (AFP) –

Ted Ligety skis the first run of the men’s Giant Slalom at the Audi FIS World Cup in Beaver Creek, Colorado. Ligety posted his second straight World Cup giant slalom victory on Sunday, easily beating Austrian Marcel Hirscher.

American Ted Ligety posted his second straight World Cup giant slalom victory on Sunday, easily beating Austrian Marcel Hirscher.

Ligety, who won the first giant slalom of the season in Austria, had a combined time of two minutes, 25.59 seconds for two runs to beat Hirscher by 1.76 seconds. Italy’s Davide Simoncelli was third in 2:27.66.

The final racer of the day, the 28-year-old Ligety charged down the tricky slope, gaining speed as he went and building on his first-run advantage.

He celebrated at the bottom of the hill by bending down and kissing the snow.

Ligety has been dominant so far this season. He captured the season-opening giant slalom in Soelden, Austria, by a massive 2.75 seconds.

He won two consecutive overall giant slalom titles, before Hirscher snapped his win streak last season.