Vorschau » placing fifth in a downhill won by Olympic

LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland -- Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway retook the lead in the overall World Cup standings Wednesday by placing fifth in a downhill won by Olympic champion Matthias Mayer of Austria. Svindal earned 45 points to move 41 ahead of two-time defending overall champion Marcel Hirscher of Austria, who skips downhills. "If I had to put money on someone I have no idea who it would be," said Svindal, who will race against Hirscher in a super-G on Thursday. Mayer earned his first career World Cup win in one minute, 29.99 seconds, 0.11 faster than Christof Innerhofer of Italy and American Ted Ligety, who tied for second. Svindal was 0.20 seconds behind Mayer. Mayer and Innerhofer finished 1-2 in the downhill at the Sochi Olympics. "Its very important," Mayer said of his win. "It was a target for me to win a World Cup race this year. Its perfect." Manuel Osborne-Paradis of North Vancouver, B.C., was 13th while Erik Guay of Mont-Tremblant was 19th but finished the season a career-best third in the overall standings despite persistent knee issues. "Theres no question it was a successful year in downhill," Guay said. "With no skiing throughout the summer and having those knee difficulties in January, there have been a lot of ups and downs. To finish third overall is great. "I feel like I could have been competitive for the Crystal Globe if Id been healthy. Its a little bit of a bummer to finish on this note but finishing third overall gives me (hope) for next year." Osborne-Paradis was ranked 18th in downhill while Calgarys Jan Hudec, who sat out Wednesdays race due to a back injury, was 24th. On Thursday, Guay and Osborne-Paradis will conclude their World Cup seasons in the super-G. Osborne-Paradis will return to Canada to defend his national downhill title in Whistler, B.C., later this month, Guay, though, will head home to Quebec, where his wife, Karen, is expecting their third child. "The super-G is going to feel fast, it will be interesting," Osborne-Paradis said. "Im going to ski hard and hope for the best. "Ive got nothing to lose so Im going to push my line and take what Ive learned from today. Ill see what I can get away with." Ligetys career-best result in downhill lifted him to third in the overall standings. His previous best in downhill was fourth, in 2007 at Lenzerheide where the steep, twisting course suits his technical skills. "This is a hill I know I have a good chance on," said Ligety, the world champion in super-G. "I also dont count on this carrying through to other races on the World Cup downhill tour." Svindal, a two-time overall champion, already clinched his second straight season-long downhill title before the World Cup Finals. "I used to be 1-2-3 every race, and now Im 4-5-6," said the Norwegian, who has finished just off the podium since the Olympics. "But Marcel is too." Manuel Osborne-Paradis of North Vancouver, B.C., was 13th and Erik Guay of Mont-Tremblant, Que., was last among the 19 skiers who finished the race. Svindal is scheduled to start the giant slalom on Saturday, but skip Sundays season-ending slalom which is typically Hirschers best event. American Bode Miller seemed poised for victory Wednesday until going wide near the end of his run. He placed eighth, 0.62 behind Mayer. Several racers found trouble on the hard, bumpy snow despite the clear, sunny conditions. Austrian Georg Streitberger twisted in the air while crashing when more than a half-second ahead of Mayer midway down. Doug Flutie Jersey .Y. - Major League Soccers independent review panel has taken back the fine and one-game suspension it placed on Toronto FC forward Luke Moore earlier this week. Zay Jones Womens Jersey . 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The stakes were higher, the competition more fierce and the atmosphere was that of a playoff game - something the young, upstart Raptors have five weeks to better prepare themselves for or the result will be eerily similar.The battle at both ends of the Premier League table will intensify on night eight of the Premier League at the Echo Arena in Liverpool. With Judgement night drawing closer, bottom-placed Robert Thornton will be desperately searching for points in his double-header this Thursday.At the top, leader Michael van Gerwen will be trying to hold off the chasing trio of Phil Taylor, Gary Anderson and James Wade, with live coverage starting at 7pm on Sky Sports 1. Michael Smith v Robert Thornton Michael Smith badly needs a win from the opening clash with Thornton The schedule starts with a survival battle and Thornton badly needs a win against fellow struggler Smith to keep his hopes alive.Thornton would draw level with Smith on three points if he picks up his first win of the campaign, piling more pressure on Dave Chisnall, who is third from bottom on the same points tally.But a win for Smith would push Thornton closer to the trap door and give The Bully Boy a real boost in his own bid to avoid an early exit. Sky Bet odds: Smith 10/11, tie 4/1, Thornton 2/1Gary Anderson v Dave Chisnall Gary Anderson added two more wins on night seven Chisnall desperately needs a result against Anderson after last weeks loss to Raymond van Barneveld, his fourth straight defeat.But this is not an ideal night to face Anderson, who has surged up the table and sits just a point behind Van Gerwen.The Scotsman defeated Adrian Lewis and Peter Wright on night seven and will be seeking his sixth straight win against Chizzy.Sky Bet odds: Anderson 4/7, tie 9/2, Chisnall 3/1Adrian Lewis v Raymond van Barneveld Raymond van Barneveld claimed a much neeeded win over Dave Chisnall Lewis and Van Barneveld have both struggled to produce consistent form since the start of the competition.ddddddddddddackpot averaged 93 in a lacklustre 7-4 defeat against Anderson last week, but Barney did halt his own worrying slump with a 7-4 win over Chisnall.Van Barneveld is still looking a little anxiously over his shoulder and needs another result to ease any lingering elimination worries.Lewis 11/10, tie 7/2, Van Barneveld 7/4Phil Taylor v Peter Wright Phil Taylor stayed within striking distance of leader Michael van Gerwen Taylor is just one leg adrift of Van Gerwen after battling back from 5-1 down to claim a 6-6 draw with his Dutch rival.Snakebite Wright, however, let a point slip away as his three missed darts allowed Anderson to close out a 7-5 win. Such costly lapses are likely to be punished by The Power, who ended with a 60 per cent success rate on the doubles against Van Gerwen.Taylor 4/6, tie 4/1, Wright 11/4Michael van Gerwen v Robert Thornton Thornton defeated Van Gerwen at last years World Grand Prix The world No 1 was frustrated by Taylors fightback and the luckless Thornton could feel the force of a backlash by The Green Machine. Van Gerwen was denied victory, despite an average over 107, and treated the Glasgow fans to a fantastic 170 checkout.But Thornton has shown he can defeat Van Gerwen on the big stage, edging him out in last years World Grand Prix final.Van Gerwen 1/8, tie 9/1, Thornton 12/1Watch all the action from night eight of the Premier League this Thursday night, starting at 7pm on Sky Sports 1. Also See: PL night seven: Talking points WATCH: Taylor warns MVG Prem Table MVG and Taylor duke out draw ' ' '