KRASNAYA POLYANA, RussiA – Ted Ligety, who skis the way a swordfighter slashes, was inclined to apply his saber-like edges to a soft portion of the Olympic giant slalom course on his second run down the mountain.
But U.S. ski team coach Sasha Rearick warned him not to blow his chances with a preventable mistake. Ligety had carved up the snow and the field on his first speedy run.
Ligety followed the plan, and annihilated the opposition with a gold medal performance in his specialty Wednesday.
"The idea was to ski the second run as if it was a strategic chess match, which Ted executed brilliantly," Rearick said. "There was a clear spot where he could have made time on everybody with his style of skiing, but we told him to ski it safe."
For Ligety, who has ruled the World Cup circuit for the past five years, winning at the Winter Olympics was a relief.
"It's my best event, and I wanted it the most, so I put a lot of pressure on myself," Ligety said. "To pull through is an awesome feeling."
Ligety, who won the super-combined at the 2006 Games, became the second American to win two Olympic Alpine golds, joining Andi Mead-Lawrence, who won the slalom and giant slalom at the 1952 Oslo Games. He's the first non-European to win the event.
He did it by relying on his signature style, which not only defies the laws of physics but the anatomy of the human knee. To watch Ligety's turns is to marvel at his balance and power through extreme leans. His skis are bent at a nearly 90-degree angle to the snow.
