Slovenia’s Andrej Jerman wins World Cup downhill in Bormio, Italy

Slovenia’s Jerman wins bumpy Bormio downhill

BORMIO, Italy — Andrej Jerman of Slovenia won the knee-jarring downhill on the Stelvio course Tuesday, and Mario Scheiber of Austria who crossed second was disqualified for irregular ski boots.

Jerman clocked 2 minutes, 0.32 seconds for his second World Cup victory. Didier Defago of Switzerland finished second, 0.53 seconds back, while pre-race favorite Michael Walchhofer of Austria was third.

Scheiber was disqualified because his ski boots were 0.06 inches above the maximum of 1.69.

Bode Miller spent the holidays with his daughter in San Diego, resting his sprained ankle. The top American finisher was Steven Nyman of Sundance, Utah, in 16th.

Teammate Erik Fisher fell near the end of his run and slid to a stop before the safety netting. He got up without any apparent injuries. American Scott Macartney did not start to rest his sore body.

While Jerman had never reached the podium before, he has always performed well in Bormio. He finished fourth three years ago and has collected five top-10 finishes on the Stelvio.

Walchhofer won back-to-back downhills on consecutive days here three years ago and was fastest in the opening training session. This was the first downhill podium for the Austrian this season, after a fourth- and two fifth-place finishes.

At 2.03 miles, the Stelvio trails only Wengen, Switzerland, as the longest course on the circuit. The constant bumps from top to bottom and shade nearly all the way down make it among the toughest physical tests on tour.

Bormio is also the only downhill where skiers can peer down from the start house and see the finish. However, overcast conditions Tuesday made the course difficult to see.

Carlo Janka of Switzerland finished 11th and regained the lead in the overall World Cup standings from Austrian rival Benjamin Raich, who skipped the race.

Janka leads with 577 points to Raich’s 565.

Swiss veteran Didier Cuche placed fifth and retained his lead in the downhill, 251-200 over Walchhofer.

After a break for New Year’s, the men’s circuit resumes with a slalom Jan. 6 in Zagreb, Croatia.