WENGEN, Switzerland (Jan. 14) - World Cup leader Bode Miller (Franconia, NH) straddled a gate Friday in the one-run slalom that opened the first one-day World Cup combined, knocking him out of a chance to fatten his points lead while Austrian Benjamin Raich - his closest challenger - had the fastest slalom time and went on to win, shaving 100 points off Miller's lead. Scott Macartney (Redmond, ME), the other American racing, was 16th.

Miller, running second in the slalom, got thrown off his rhythm in a combination of gates, missing the second gate as he straddled. He had 988 points to 790 for Raich with no one else over 600.

The men run the 75th Lauberhorn downhill, the longest DH on the World Cup tour, Saturday and then have a slalom Sunday before heading to Kitzbuehel, Austria, for the Hahnenkamm Weekend Jan. 21-23 with a super G, DH, slalom and combined calculation (no real event).

MEN'S ALPINE WORLD CUP
75th Lauberhorn
Wengen, SUI - Jan. 14, 2005
First one-day combined
(1 run SL, 1 run DH)

1. Benjamin Raich, Austria, 2:28.37
2. Lasse Kjus, Norway, 2:28.69
3. Didier Defago, Switzerland, 2:29.77
4. Daniel Albrecht, Switzerland, 2:30.17
5. Kjetil Andre Aamodt, Norway, 2:30.19

16. Scott Macartney, Redmond, Wash., 2:34.43

DQ'd-SL:
Bode Miller, Franconia, N.H.

— Courtesy of US Ski Team