Hoelzl wraps up giant slalom crown; Vonn crash keeps Riesch's hopes alive

GERMANY'S Kathrin Hoelzl had to settle for second in the final giant slalom of the season but still wrapped up the crystal globe while Maria Riesch kept her hopes of the overall title alive.

TOO GOOD: Kathrin Hoelzl had to settle for silver in Garmisch-Partenkirchen but it was still good enough to collect the crystal globe (Getty Images)

Hoelzl has been in dominant giant slalom form this season and while she was pipped to gold in Garmisch-Partenkirchen by Slovenia's Tina Maze, her previous giant slalom victories in Aspen and Lienz were enough to seal victory.

The German is the current world champion and while she disappointed at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver last month, Hoelzl was back to her best on home soil and posted 1:04.72 minutes in the first run to lead by just 0.03 from Maze.

The Slovenian, the giant slalom silver medallist in Vancouver, turned the tables in the second run to clinch gold by 0.03 while Riesch was third ahead of fellow German and Olympic champion Viktoria Rebensburg.

"It was really close and I knew that after the first run, I  had to attack on the following run. They were both very tight and on this course the margin would always be small," said Maze.

"But I wanted to end to season on a high and after doing well in Vancouver and now getting this gold, it couldn't be better."

Hoelzl's second place took her overall giant slalom tally to 471 while Austria's Kathrin Zettel, the only skier that could catch her before the race, ended up second on 394 points, courtesy of her ninth-place finish in Germany, while Maze was third.

The USA's Lindsey Vonn arrived in Garmisch-Partenkirchen on the cusp of her third straight overall World Cup title, but fresh from her two Olympic gold medals in Vancouver, best friend Riesch has closed the gap.

Ahead of the giant slalom, Vonn, already crowned downhill and super-G World Cup champion, had a lead of 225 points with a maximum of 300 remaining, despite Riesch's victory in the downhill on Wednesday.

But Vonn failed to finish her first giant slalom run while Riesch amassed 60 points for finishing third to narrow the gap to 165 points with the slalom and the super-G remaining.

And it remains to be seen whether Vonn will be fit enough to take part in the remaining two events, following a heavy fall that ended her participation in Thursday's event prematurely.