Alpine skiing-Brignone wins Sestriere giant slalom, Shiffrin returns in 25th spot

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(Reuters) – Italian Federica Brignone won a women’s World Cup giant slalom on home snow in Sestriere on Friday as U.S. ski great Mikaela Shiffrin finished 25th on her return to the discipline after a crash in Vermont last November.

New Zealand’s Alice Robinson was second, after setting the fastest time in the first run, and Thea Louise Stjernesund of Norway finished third. The top two was the same as at this month’s world championships.

Shiffrin did not race the giant slalom at those championships in Saalbach, Austria, after deciding she was not mentally ready.

Still chasing a record-extending 100th World Cup win, the American suffered a puncture wound in her abdomen in the accident in Killington.

“For the rest of the season I feel my goal is sort of fighting for some points, basically try to stay in the top 30 in GS which is a very different position from the last many years when I was fighting for podiums,” Shiffrin told Eurosport.

“That’s not where I am right now, and that’s OK. To reach my max potential right now it’s to collect points and today was some points.”

Shiffrin said the big step on Friday had been pushing out of the start gate.

“That’s a big step from not racing at all,” she said. “Sometimes when you’re used to being in the position to fight for top 10s, top fives, podiums it doesn’t feel like such a big step as it actually is.”

The win was a career 33rd in the World Cup for ‘Snow Tiger’ Brignone, and 15th in giant, at the age of 34 and after suffering a recent bout of sickness.

“I am feeling better since yesterday, I knew it was possible to make two good runs and this is what I tried today,” said the Italian.

Brignone now leads the overall standings by 170 points from Switzerland’s Lara Gut-Behrami, who failed to finish the first leg. Robinson leads the giant slalom standings, 39 ahead of Sweden’s Sara Hector with Brignone third.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Ken Ferris)