Alpine skiing's Pinturault wins Garmisch giant slalom

GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany (AFP) –

Frenchman Alexis Pinturault competes during the FIS World Cup men’s Giant Slalom first run competition in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany, on February 24, 2013.

France’s Alexis Pinturault claimed his first giant slalom victory on the World Cup circuit here on Sunday, as Austrian Marcel Hirscher consolidated his lead atop the overall standings.

The Frenchman’s time of 2min 32.42sec over the two runs gave him the win by 0.60sec ahead of Hirscher.

Recently-crowned world giant slalom champion Ted Ligety of the United States finished third at 0.63sec having made a mistake on his second run.

There was heartbreak for Garmisch local Felix Neureuther, who led after the first run, but a clear mistake halfway down the second run cost him valuable time and a win on his home piste.

World downhill champion Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway was sixth at 0.97sec, and now sits 209 points adrift of Hirscher in the overall standings.