BORMIO, Italy, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Italian ski champion Dominik Paris' bid for a second Olympic medal lasted less than 20 seconds on Wednesday as one of his ski bindings unexpectedly came off while competing in super-G.
Speed specialist Paris, 36 and attending his fifth Winter Games, had been hoping to build on the momentum of the downhill bronze he clinched on Saturday.
But the Italian lost his left ski in a sudden jolt just a few turns from the start hut in Bormio, sliding sideways on the upper section of the Stelvio slope and coming to a halt - unharmed - as stunned fans looked on.
“I don't know what happened, because it's a ski I always used in the races, and it was always good," a disappointed Paris said after the race.
"We’re checking the binding to see if something broke, because this just can’t happen. Otherwise you can’t even risk going down this downhill," he said.
MEMORIES OF SIMILAR INCIDENT IN BORMIO
Paris, one of Italy’s most decorated speed specialists, had entered the Games determined to make the most of what is likely to be his final Olympic appearance, his confidence boosted by six downhill and one super-G victory in World Cup events on the famously tricky Stelvio course.
The Italian downhiller said the incident brought back memories of a similar episode two years earlier when, during a World Cup super-G on the same Bormio course, he also fell shortly after the start due to equipment failure.
"What happened today is a real pity," he said. "It happened also two years ago. Today I couldn’t show what I’m capable of."
Paris said that he was in any case "totally happy" about winning an Olympic medal at last.
"His passion and ability on the slope is one of the most impressive," Ryan Cochran-Siegle, of the U.S., who claimed silver in Wednesday's super-G, said of Paris. "I was really happy to see him on the downhill podium. It was so powerful and so representative of his passion and career."
Paris declined to say whether this season will be his final one, pointing to the fact that Italian teammate Christof Innerhofer is still racing at age 41.
"For now I’ll focus on the World Cup until the end of the season, and then we’ll see,” said Paris.
(Reporting by Lisa Jucca in Bormio; Additional reporting by Marleen Kaesebier; Editing by Alison Williams)
