A much-improved performance from Kiwi skier Alice Robinson in the second World Cup Giant Slalom in Kranjska Gora in Slovenia.
The 19-year-old Kiwi has finished ninth after a 14th place finish on the same hill 24 hours earlier.
Robinson was 9th after the first run, clocking 1:11.85 to be 1.53 seconds behind American leader Mikaela Shiffrin. She failed to improve on that place but did finish just ahead of reigning World Champion Petra Vlhova of Slovakia.
"I just wanted to be a bit cleaner [on run one], I had a lot of mistakes yesterday, I think I did that, but I wasn't pushing enough, not aggressive enough," Robinson lamented.
Robinson skied a solid second run and explained that the plan was to "attack more on the second run and rip some normal turns".
Robinson clocked 1:08.43 in her second run which was 8th fastest and her combined time of 2:20.38 was 2.32 seconds slower than the winner, Italian Marta Bassino who claimed back-to-back victories in Kranjska Gora to have four victories from five races this season. Shiffrin who led after the first run had a poor second run to finish sixth.
Robinson's co-coach Chris Knight felt she was much better in the first run until the last pitch where she lost a lot of time and was a bit conservative.
"But even with that she isn't far off and so it's a step in the right direction," Knight said.
It's the best result so far for Robinson in what has proven to be a difficult campaign for the young Kiwi. Robinson won two of the six World Cup Giant Slaloms last season, including at Kranjska Gora in February.
After a 12th in the season opener in Solden in October, she crashed in both GS's in Courchevel in December and she hasn't seriously threatened the podium. The top ten finish today has seen Robinson climb six spots to 16th in the overall World Cup Giant Slalom standings with three races to go.
Kranjska Gora was a late change to the schedule with a lack of snow forcing this weekend's races to be moved from Maribor to the resort higher in the mountains nearer the Slovenian border with Austria.
A year ago, Robinson powered to her second victory of the Covid shortened season with her second run nearly half a second quicker than her nearest rival and a full second over everyone else.