Skiing World Championships

Lindsey Vonn current overall World Cup leader won back-to-back races in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, over the weekend and tied Tamara McKinney's American women's record of 18 career victories. The skiing worlds open with the women's super-G on Tuesday, with Anja Paerson of Sweden the two-time defending champion. "There's definitely a little pressure coming in to World Championships never having won a gold medal," said Lindsey. "I hope to change that."

Lindsey Vonn, of the United States, celebrates on podium after winning an alpine ski, women's World Cup super-G race, in Garmisch Partenkirchen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2009. Photo: Associated Press/Enrico Schiavi
Her teammate in US girls skiing, Julia Mancuso, has won her share of medals including a gold in giant slalom at the 2006 Turin Olympics. Mancuso reached Garmisch in a personal bus, "I got some spinning in, we made some dinner, watched a lot of movies and we only got lost once, so it wasn't much of a problem. We got in at 1 a.m."

The 2009 World Championships, also knowns as the Val d'Isère championships, start with the girls events. Even though alpine skiing is mainly a European and North American sport, there will be 69 nations taking part at Val d'Isère. The Japanese, Koreans and Chinese have already won medals in one of the championship disciplines. Athletes from Algeria and Morocco will also be participating.

Impact of the credit crunch on skiing and winter sports

The global credit crunch has affected many sports, like auto racing, sumo wrestling, surfing, etc. In Vancouver, which is due to host next year's Winter Olympics, banks are not willing to give loans for the construction of the Olympic Village. On the other hand investments into the construction of ski resorts are taking place in emerging countries like Bulgaria, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Russia, which will host the Sotchi Winter Games in 2014.