Lindsey Vonn won a women's World Cup downhill Saturday for her fourth victory of the season.
The three-time defending overall champion skied well off course in a sharp right turn but recovered in time to finish the 3-kilometer Kaelberloch course in 1 minute, 46.39 seconds.
Sweden's Anja Paerson placed second, 0.43 behind the American, to earn her first podium finish of the season.
It's Vonn's 20th career downhill title and 37th overall.
"It's always great to win a race in Austria, it feels like a second home to me here," said Vonn, who usually spends a month of training in this region in the offseason.
Austria's Anna Fenninger was 0.98 seconds back in third for her first top-3 finish in downhill, while World Cup leader Maria Riesch took fourth - another 0.07 behind Vonn.
The German remained on top of the standings with 883 points, followed by the American, who reduced her deficit with 50 points and now has 747.
"It's a shame to miss the podium by just 0.07 but I am very satisfied," said Riesch, who struggled in both training runs on this course over the past two days.
"I definitely did better today but made a mistake in the middle part," Riesch said. "I lost speed and time there."
Vonn was the fastest starter but was not clean afterward.
"I almost ended up in the safety nets in the middle part," she said. "I tried to forget about that and gain speed again in the next turn. If you race aggressively, you can win much time on this course ... my skis were really fast."
Vonn was helped at the course inspection by her husband Thomas and the U.S. team coaches to get prepared for the race.
"We always make a plan together, it gives me confidence going into the race," she said. "I've made a lot of mistakes this season but I know I have to stay cool and avoid unnecessary risks."
Vonn's victory means she's just four wins away from Paerson's record of 41 World Cup titles.
The Swede saw the first half of her season spoilt by equipment troubles, but seemed to have found the right set-up for the second part.
"The right feeling on the snow has always been key to the successes in my career," Paerson said. "If it doesn't feel well, I can't ski well."
Paerson took a break around the start of the new year to test new skis.
"From the first training here I felt that I was on the right way," she said. "I even had the idea I could win today. Being on the podium is just what I wanted."
Paerson, who started 17th, was ahead of Fenninger's best time thoughout. Her hopes to actually win the race lasted for two racers until Vonn sped down wearing bib 20.
A women's World Cup super-G is scheduled for Sunday in Altenmarkt-Zauchensee.
