SKIING

Vonn settles for third place in downhill at worlds

Ilka Stuhec of Slovenia is the new world champion in downhill while Lindsey Vonn took bronze trying to regain a title she last won in 2009.

Stuhec confirmed her status as pre-race favorite, finishing 0.40 seconds clear of surprise silver medalist Stephanie Venier of Austria in the world championships at St. Moritz, Switzerland.

Vonn was 0.45 behind Stuhec, who led at all but one time check and clocked the fastest speed of 78 mph.

The 32-year-old American set one world championships record. She became the oldest female medalist, taking the mark from Anita Wachter of Austria, who won giant slalom bronze days before her 32nd birthday in 1999.

Vonn now has four career medals in worlds downhills, though only one gold, eight years ago in Val d’Isere, France.

Vonn might have missed the podium, finishing just 0.07 ahead of fourth-placed Sofia Goggia of Italy who was fastest at the final time check before losing her racing line.

• Host nation Switzerland got the men’s world championships gold medal it most wanted when Beat Feuz won the downhill at St. Moritz.

Roger Federer had a front-row seat in the stands to see Feuz finish 0.12 seconds faster than Erik Guay of Canada, denying the super-G winner a speed title double.

Max Franz of Austria was third, 0.37 behind Feuz, who took downhill bronze two years ago.

TENNIS

FED CUP: CoCo Vandeweghe won the final 10 games to beat Germany’s Andrea Petkovic 3-6, 6-4, 6-0 and give the United States an insurmountable 3-0 advantage in its Fed Cup quarterfinal match at Kaanapali, Hawaii.

The U.S. advanced to the semifinals for the first time since 2010.

The U.S. will host defending champion Czech Republic in the semifinal to be played April 22-23.

OPEN SUD DE FRANCE: Teenage Alexander Zverev beat two-time defending champion Richard Gasquet 7-6 (4), 6-3 at Montpellier to win his second career title.

The 19-year-old German’s other title came in September when he beat three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka to win the St. Petersburg Open in Russia.

SOCCER

PREMIER LEAGUE: Leicester’s title defense sunk to a new low when the slumping champions lost 2-0 to host Swansea for a fifth straight defeat.

First-half goals by defenders Alfie Mawson and Martin Olsson sank Leicester, which dropped to 17th place in the 20-team league, one place and one point above the relegation zone.

• League leader Chelsea dropped points for the third time since September, held to a 1-1 draw by host Burnley.

Pedro Rodriguez finished off a rapid counterattack to put Chelsea ahead in the seventh minute, only for Burnley to equalize through Robbie Brady’s curling, 25-meter free-kick in the 24th.

BIATHLON

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: Martin Fourcade won the men’s pursuit title for the fourth time, hours after Laura Dahlmeier also defended her title in the women’s race at Hochfilzen, Austria.

Fourcade finished the 12.5-kilometer race in 30 minutes, 16.9 seconds to beat Norwegians Johannes Thingnes Boe and Ole Einar Bjoerndalen by 20.8 and 25.6 seconds, respectively.

Dahlmeier finished the 10K race in 28:02.3 seconds to lead Darya Domracheva – Bjoerndalen’s wife – by 11.6 seconds.

– News service report

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