Sochi alpine skiing course a 'disaster' - PHOTO

Soft snow, steep angles and tough curves - all common complaints Saturday at the women's super-G course during the gold medal run.'There is no snow at the bottom, it's not funny anymore. This is a disaster, it was a shame for everybody,' said Switzerland's Laura Gut, who finished fourth.Only one of the first eight starters finished, leading the rest of the skiers to change their strategy. For many, adjusting still didn't work.'Everybody was crashing around, it's difficult to stay on your skis - you are constantly losing them," Gut said. 'I don't know if this is the best way to show off our skiing. It's not a race. You are just trying to come down.'Anna Fenninger of Austria took gold, finishing the 2.1-kilometer (1.3-mile) course in 1:25.52.German Maria Hoefl-Riesch took the silver medal, finishing 0.55 seconds behind Fenninger. Austria's Nicole Hosp took the bronze, 0.11 seconds behind Hoefl-Riesch.The U.S. team's highest position was Julia Mancuso in eighth place.Leanne Smith finished 16th in the event, and two others, Laurenne Ross and Stacey Cook, failed to finish the course.In all, 18 of the 49 starters failed to finish the course.'I think we all underestimated the track,' said Switzerland's Fabienne Suter, who finished seventh.Suter said the skiers thought there would be fewer problems after a morning inspection. Then competition started.'I saw the first and second starters on the TV. I had a strange feeling before going down the track,' she said.(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az