Maze, Gisin win gold in women´s Olympic downhill

SOCHI, Russia: The gold market enjoyed big gains at the Sochi Olympics on Wednesday, getting an unexpected boost from the women´s downhill.

Tina Maze of Slovenia and Dominique Gisin of Switzerland were declared co-gold medalists, the first time in Olympic Alpine history a race was won in a tie.

On a day that had little to do with winter — temperatures hit 63 degrees (17 C) — the two friends covered the 1.69-mile (2.7-kilometer) Rosa Khutor course in 1 minute, 41.57 seconds.

A tearful Lara Gut of Switzerland won the bronze, 0.10 seconds back.
The favorites, Maria Hoefl-Riesch of Germany and Julia Mancuso of the U.S., were afterthoughts.

Hoefl-Riesch, eyeing a record-equaling fourth Olympic Alpine gold, finished 13th while Mancuso was eighth.