Razzoli's slalom gold cheers up Italy, makes Tomba cry (News Feature)

By Alberto Cagliano Feb 28, 2010, 11:32 GMT

Rome - The comparison between Giuliano Razzoli and slalom legend Alberto Tomba warmed up the Italian winter Sunday after the Razzo - the rocket - won a first gold medal for Italy at the winter Olympics in Vancouver.

The smiling face of Razzo finally brought joy to a team that had largely disappointed in Canada after the good showing the Azzurri made at the 2006 Winter Olympics hosted in Turin.

It was almost midnight on Saturday night when Italian ski fans watched Razzoli triumph ahead of Croatia's Ivica Kostelic and Swede Andre Myhrer on the piste at Whistler.

His gold was the fifth overall for Italy, a far cry from the 11 - five golds and six bronzes - won in Turin.

'I'm speechless. I don't know how I did it,' the 25-year-old said. 'I'm happy for my fans. I must thank them. I know there were a lot watching (me on) television. They suffered with me, but tonight I excited them and I'm happy about it.

'I want to thank my team, the ski federation that in these years helped me do a great work, my family, Tomba who rooted for me and whom I'm pleased to have made cry.'

Emotions seem to have overcome the exuberant Tomba as he stood by the finish line to watch Razzo's triumph in the second run to retain the first place secured in the first.

Tomba, 43, took home two gold medals from Canada in 1988, winning the giant slalom and the slalom at the Olympics in Calgary. The second triumph came on the same date as Razzoli's, February 27.

Tomba won a third Olympic giant slalom gold at Albertville in France in 1992 and, in 1994, a slalom silver at Lillehammer's Norway-hosted Olympics, again on February 27.

Razzoli's success a day before the end of the Olympics only in part allayed the disappointment of the Italian squad, which hopes to add one medal from 50-kilometre cross-country ski race on Sunday.

Before Razzo's gold, the Azzurri had only won three bronze medals and one silver, suffering disappointing performances from track skater Enrico Fabris, who won two golds in Turin, and Carolina Kostner, the 2010 European champion in figure skating.