Olympic Alpine Skiing 2014: Preview and Predictions for Men's Slalom
Before the curtain falls on the 2014 Winter Olympics, one more men's Alpine skiing event must be contested.
The slalom competition will be held on Saturday, and the event will close out the program at the Rosa Khutor Alpine Center.
The discipline presents racers with one final chance to snag gold before the next four-year wait begins for the 2018 Games.
Continue reading for a complete preview of the men's slalom.
Overview
The slalom, just like the giant slalom, features two runs with the lowest combined time winning the gold medal.
The current World Cup leader in the discipline is Austria's Marcel Hirscher, who will be in search of the third gold and sixth overall medal for his nation in Alpine skiing.
Austria has been the most successful country in the Alpine events with five medals, while the United States has four and Switzerland and Germany have three.
Schedule, TV and Live Stream Info
The event will take place on Saturday with the first run coming at 7:45 a.m. ET and the second run down the course starting at 11:45 a.m. ET.
The slalom competition can be seen live in its entirety on the NBC Sports Live Extra app, and parts of the event will be shown in tape delay starting at 8 p.m. ET as a part of NBC's prime-time coverage.
How Did We Get Here?
Slalom will be the last Alpine event contested in Sochi, and it will have to live up to the exciting events that have preceded it.
The downhill saw Matthias Mayer come out of nowhere and win for Austria, while U.S. favorite Ted Ligety destroyed the course in the giant slalom.
Sandro Viletta of Switzerland won the super combined event, and Kjetil Jansrud of Norway was the champion in the super-G.
In a sport where dual gold medalists are rare, expect a new face to stand atop the podium on Saturday.
Top Storylines
Can Marcel Hirscher Earn Austria's Second Gold?
As the leader in the World Cup slalom standings, Hirscher enters as the favorite, and the pressure will be on him to perform at an Olympics that has seen a few relative unknowns medal.
The unlikeliest of things can happen at the Olympics, and Hirscher must avoid any slip-ups on the course during his first run to put him in position to end the Games on a high note for Austria.
Which Unknown Will Steal the Spotlight?
Twice at the Olympics we have seen two skiers come out of nowhere to find themselves on the medal podium.
Matthias Mayer's gold in downhill was an unusual feat, but compared to the silver earned by the United States' Andrew Weibrecht in the super-G, it seemed normal.
Mayer had not finished above fifth in any downhill event this season before winning gold, while Weibrecht was 88th in the World Cup standings heading into Sochi.
Can the French Continue Late Medal Surge?
You may not think of France as a medal-producing powerhouse, but this year they are, with 15 total medals, two of which came in the giant slalom.
France has three skiers in the top 20 of the World Cup slalom standings, including giant slalom bronze medalist Alexis Pinturault in ninth.
With a full head of steam behind them as a nation in the final days of the Games, expect one of the Frenchmen to surprise people and contend for a medal.
Who Are the Sleepers?
Ted Ligety
It may come as a surprise to name Ligety a dark horse in the slalom, but he is 31st in the World Cup standings.
The American is riding a ton of momentum from the giant slalom win, and he could put in a strong pair of runs to fly the flag high for the United States.
Giuliano Razzoli
Sitting 29th in the World Cup standings, Italy's Giuliano Razzoli may seem like an average entrant in a crowded slalom field, but he is far from that.
Razzoli conquered the slalom course in Vancouver back in 2010 to earn the gold.
Regardless of what form he is in, it is never a good thing to count out someone with his Olympic pedigree.
Who Is the Favorite to Win Gold?
If you were a betting man, it would be wise of you to put money down on Marcel Hirscher.
Despite the threat of an unknown winning the gold, it is worth noting that the winners in the super-G and giant slalom were ranked in the top 10 in the World Cup standings in each event.
Hirscher enters the slalom competition with a fourth and two fifths in Olympic competition over the past two Games.
He will certainly love to change that before he has to wait another four years to earn his first career Olympic gold.
Complete Medal Prediction
Gold: Marcel Hirscher (Austria)
Silver: Felix Neureuther (Germany)
Bronze: Ivica Kostelic (Croatia)
Hirscher is not the only skier mentioned in this slide who has a ton of pedigree heading into the slalom competition.
Felix Neureuther is third in the World Cup standings, but he has failed to finish in the last two Olympic slalom competitions.
Look for the German to finally get over the mistakes of years past and bring home the silver.
Croatia's Ivica Kostelic is an Alpine skiing legend, and he should be hungry for another medal in Sochi after earning silver in the giant slalom.
The 2010 silver medalist in the slalom will be in the hunt for the podium throughout both runs.
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