BEAVER CREEK, Colo. -- Jessica Lindell-Vikarby won a World Cup giant slalom Sunday, holding off the 18-year-old Mikaela Shiffrin with a fluid final run. The Swede finished the two runs on a demanding Beaver Creek course in 2 minutes, 17.92 seconds, with Shiffrin 0.09 seconds behind. Tina Weirather of Liechtenstein took third. Shiffrin was spurred on by a frenzied home crowd, but all the noise down low didnt appear to rattle Lindell-Vikarby, who won a World Cup race for the first time since 2009. "I tried to stay focus and do my own run," she said. "I cant do anything else than just ski." There was not a trace of disappointment from Shiffrin, though. She was quite pleased with her first top-three finish in the event. After all, Shiffrin is a slalom specialist who just recently started working on improving her giant slalom technique. Being this quick, this fast was something she didnt expect, even if it is her favourite hill, with her home about 10 minutes away. Her solid performance salvaged an otherwise forgettable weekend for the Americans as the team struggled at Beaver Creek. "I followed through with my plan. I really just wanted to go out and ski as well as I could today," Shiffrin said. "Im really happy with how today went." The teenager was accorded the Lindsey Vonn treatment by the large crowd. They cheered the skier from nearby Eagle-Vail by ringing bells and holding up signs with her picture on it. Shiffrin could very well be the face of the Sochi Games for the U.S., especially with Vonn trying to come back from a right knee injury following a recent crash in training. This was a difficult course, too, with Lara Gut of Switzerland struggling and failing to finish the first run. Gut won the downhill and super-G the last two days. "Of course, Im a bit angry after today," Gut said. "But its even better than I couldve imagined." Shiffrin placed sixth in the GS in Soelden, Austria, for her best World cup result in the event. But she knew she could ski better. This time, she went for it. After finishing her run, Shiffrin pumped her fist in the air, then took off her ski, pumping that in the air, too. With only Lindell-Vikarby left, a win looked very possible. It wasnt to be. Not on this day. In between runs, Shiffrin actually looked at video of Lindell-Vikarbys run and had a feeling she was going to throw down another fast one. "I knew that going out of the gate had to give it my all," Shiffrin said. In the week leading to the race, Shiffrin kept a low profile. But she couldnt avoid the spotlight after Sunday, not after this kind of performance. Little kids lined the fence begging for her autograph. Shiffrin happily obliged. "Its awesome to be here, feel the crowd and see everybody so excited about skiing," Shiffrin said. After winning the World Cup overall slalom title last season, Shiffrin decided to branch out over the off-season and work on her GS. "My only expectation is to ski as well as I can," Shiffrin said. "Try to put my training into the races. The biggest bummer is coming down in a race and thinking that I left something on the hill. Im trying to not do that -- ever." No reason to fear that at Beaver Creek. "Shes a phenom," said Bill Marolt, the president and CEO of U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association. "She has the athletic ability, the mental tenacity to do what shes done and will continue to do." It wasnt a stellar weekend for Julia Mancuso or the rest of the U.S. skiers. They couldnt gain traction on their home hill. Apart from Shiffrin, no American finished in the top 10. "When things are going fast, it feels easy. When things are going bad, you feel like you want to give up," Mancuso said. "But its definitely one of those sports where one thing can click and you can go from being in last to winning. And Ive done it myself. Ive gone from 50th place in a downhill and won the next one. "Its tough. Ski racings one of those things you have to keep fighting. If youre off by just a little bit, it adds up every gate. But its definitely the right direction." Custom Jaguars Jerseys . As Valanciunas was whistled for a rare technical toward the end of the third quarter - a result of waving his hand at an official after being called for a foul - Lowry pulled the Raptors sophomore aside, corralling him by his jersey and patting him on the back. Cheap Jacksonville Jaguars Jerseys Online . "Its not done, but its a huge step," Hannover general manager Dirk Dufner said. Poor defending allowed the visitors to score in the second minute, when Leon Andreasens header from Christian Panders cross sent the ball inside the far post. http://www.jaguarscheap.com/.com) - Jenny Boucek is the new head coach of the Seattle Storm. Stitched Jacksonville Jaguars Jerseys . As each game passes (each has played close with the exception of last night) it becomes clearer just how evenly matched these two teams are and how one mistake, or one bad inning, is likely to sway the result. Wholesale Jacksonville Jaguars Jerseys . With a win tonight, Buehrle will match Yankees ace Masahiro Tanaka for the most wins in the majors with 11. Buehrle is 10-4 with a 2.32 earned run average, but has lost his last three starts, including a 7-3 setback at Yankee Stadium last Wednesday.The 2014 World Figure Skating Championships begin this week in Tokyo. With Olympic champions in three of the four disciplines on the sidelines for various reasons, it is as though the page has been turned to the next Olympic quadrennial. We will get a glimpse of the future of the sport and meet some of skatings up-and-coming talent like the new world junior champion, 15-year-old Nam Nguyen of Canada while at the same time celebrating some of the sports stars. The setting for this years Worlds is perfect in that Japan is a country that is passionate about its skaters and skating. It is the quintessential skating audience; enthusiastic, appreciative and massive. The Saitama Super Arena just outside of Tokyo holds 18,000 spectators and is predicting sell-out crowds and record-breaking attendances. The only Olympic champion from Sochi that is here is the one that matters most to these fans, hometown hero Yuzuru Hanyu. He, alongside the immensely popular Mao Asada, leads a strong Japanese contingent which could dominate in the mens and ladies competitions. While Yuzuru is the favorite in the mens, his competition is expected to come from his training mate, Javier Fernandez of Spain and his teammate Tatsuki Machida. Asada will face Olympic bronze medalist Carolina Kostner of Italy, Russian teenager and the star of the team event in Sochi, Julia Lipnitskaya, and American Gracie Gold. While there is a lot to get excited about here in Tokyo, Canadian superstars Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir as well as Patrick Chan will sit this one out and be much missed. Even without Tessa, Scott and Patrick, Canada is still in the hunt for three medals. With the Canadian champions out of the dance and mens, Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje along with Kevin Reynolds will get their turn to move from the shadows into the spotlight and, they hope, onto the podium. Kaitlyn and Andrew have a clear shot at a medal. In typical Weaver and Poje fashion, they have not let up after the Games and have continued to push themselves and refine their routines. I find their improvement since the Games impressive. With the top two dance teams from Olympics out, Kaitlyn and Andrew are squarely in the mix of five teams for the podium. The race is tight, but a podium finish is in their sights and well within their capabilities. Kevin Reynolds finished fifth at last years Worlds but with injuries and boot problems, he has struggled this year. He did not have hhis best skates in the individual event in Sochi and finished 15th.ddddddddddddWe saw what he was capable of during the team competition where he laid down a stellar free skate, playing an integral role in Canadas silver medal win. He has had another month of training under his belt since the Games and he loves to skate in Japan where he has an adoring fan base. I expect that these circumstances will combine to give Kevin an outside shot at a medal. After a frustrating year, Kevin has a chance for redemption and he just may have timed it perfectly to finish on a high. Another Canadian team member who is looking for redemption after a frustrating season is Canadas ladies champion Kaetlyn Osmond, who was plagued by injuries this season. Her break-out year last season culminated in an eighth place finish at her first ever World Championships, a remarkable debut. Her lack of training time has unsettled her this season but I have watched her handle it well with the help of her coach, Ravi Walia. She has a sparkle and exuberance that needs to be strategically disciplined in order to give her the consistency she is looking for without losing the fire. This is something that can only come with time as well as trial and error. When Kaetlyn finds her groove, she can compete with the best of them. A medal may be out of her grasp in Tokyo but there is no doubt in my mind that Kaetlyn can establish herself as one of the contenders in this new Olympic cycle. Canada has two pairs going for the podium. Kirsten Moore-Towers and Dylan Moskvitch were fifth at the Games while Megan Duhammel and Eric Radford were eighth. They were third and fourth in the world last year and will look for similar results here. Kirsten and Dylan are known to charm their audiences and if they are to get the results they are looking for, they will have to deliver the technical details while winning over the fans. They can go clean and will need to if they are to medal. Meagan and Eric will try to bring home the hardware by capitalizing on their strengths as individuals, the ability to do difficult side-by-side triples, to give them the edge. They take big risks to maximize points and while it didnt pay off in the individual event in Sochi, it often does and you can expect it will here, too. The Olympic pairs champions are not here but competition will still be fierce with teams from Russia, Germany and China battling the Canadians for the top spots. 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