Raich throws down guantlet

Austrian Raich, the reigning overall champion, must win the final race of the season to stand any chance of overhauling Norway's Aksel Lund Svindal and he looked more than capable of achieving that when he raced down in 48.19 seconds.

Fellow Austrian and world slalom champion Matt was next quickest, 0.57 seconds back. Matt holds a 15-point lead over Raich in the slalom title race.

Svindal, who can clinch the overall cup by finishing in the top 15, was 12th quickest after a conservative first run.

"I achieved almost the perfect run," said the 29-year-old Raich, who is 97 points behind Svindal after the Norwegian's hat-trick of victories here in the Swiss Alps.

"I found a great rhythm from the first gate and was able to attack all the way down. The slope was in great condition and I had nothing to lose so it was very enjoyable."

Sweden's Jens Byggmark, who is also still in contention for the slalom title, was fourth quickest going into the second leg which starts at 1030GMT.

American Bode Miller failed to finish yet again, meaning he completed just two of the 10 slalom races this season.