LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland, March 16 - Switzerland's
women's Alpine skiing World Cup coach Fritz Zueger has stepped
down after a season of disappointing results.
Swiss women have managed just two podium finishes all season
going into the final weekend of racing in Lenzerheide and they
failed to pick up any individual medals at the world
championships in Are, Sweden, last month.
In a statement from Swiss Ski on Friday, the 52-year-old
Zueger said: "I wasn't able to exercise my strengths as a
motivator this season. That's why it's better for both sides if
we make a change."
The statement said a successor would hopefully be named in
the next few weeks.
Switzerland's women were once a major force on the World
Cup, winning the overall title eight years out of nine during
the 1980s. Vreni Schneider was their last overall champion, in
1995, but since her retirement no Swiss woman has finished in
the top two in the end-of-season standings.
In contrast to the women, the Swiss men's team have enjoyed
a strong season with Didier Cuche winning the downhill World Cup
title. They gained four medals, including a super-combined gold
for Daniel Albrecht at the world championships.