Aksel Lund Svindal won a World Cup downhill on the Lauberhorn course on Saturday, finally taking the classic title at the 10th attempt and the overall standings lead.
Svindal stunned the Swiss crowd by being 1.52 seconds faster than early leader Klaus Kroell of Austria down the shortened 2.7-kilometre course.
Hannes Reichelt raced immediately after Svindal and got within .19 of the Norwegian's one minute, 48.79 seconds mark to finish second, pushing teammate Kroell into third. No one else came close.
Svindal's fourth victory in five downhills this season earned him 100 race points and the overall lead. He is 15 points ahead of Marcel Hirscher, the four-time defending champion from Austria, who does not race downhill and will start among the favourites in Sunday's slalom.
The top Canadian on the day was veteran Erik Guay who finished 14th, 2.41 seconds behind Svindal. Manuel Osborne-Paradis, Jeffrey Frisch, Broderick Thompson and Tyler Werry finished 33rd, 44th, 49th, and 51st, respectively.
Norway has swept the three-race Wengen meeting so far after Jansrud edged Svindal for victory in combined on Friday.
With 11 World Cup wins for Norwegian men this season, in just 18 races, the Nordic nation has matched its all-time season record in Alpine racing.
Svindal and Reichelt raced in overcast conditions just before fog rolled across the course.
When Kjetil Jansrud of Norway started after a 15-minute delay, the visibility and lightly falling snow made fast times almost impossible. Jansrud finished 2.13 back and was visibly frustrated in the finish area.
Sunshine lit the course only for the early starters, and Kroell — the 2011 Lauberhorn winner — used his No. 4 bib to set the fastest time. Svindal and Reichelt raced Nos. 18 and 19. The start was brought down the mountain from the full 4.4-kilometre distance because fog and snow prevented a planned early-morning training run on the top section.
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