MARIBOR, Slovenia — Finland's Tanja Poutiainen clinched the World Cup slalom title yesterday.

Poutiainen finished third in a race won by Swedish skier Anja Paerson, a slalom winner for the first time this season. Paerson had a two-run time of 1 minute, 32.38 seconds, 0.28 ahead of Croatia's Janica Kostelic. It was her 14th World Cup victory.

Poutiainen was third in 1:32.73, wrapping up the slalom title with 520 points entering the final race in Lenzerheide, Switzerland.

Poutiainen's success in the discipline of slalom also built her lead in the overall World Cup standings. She has 902 points. Second-place Kostelic has 879.

Sarah Schleper of Vail, Colo., was fourth in yesterday's event. Kristina Koznick of Eagan, Minn., was fifth.

Pranger prevails

Pranger covered the two runs in 1:31.51. Countryman Mario Matt was second.

Bode Miller of Franconia, N.H., the World Cup overall men's leader by 166 points, lost his balance and failed to join the top 30 for the second leg.

"The snow changes the whole way down. It's little parts of really grippy snow and little parts of icy snow."

Ted Ligety of Park City, Utah, was 12th. Tom Rothrock of Cashmere placed 18th. Paul McDonald of Bellevue didn't finish his first run.

• Jennifer Rodriguez of Miami became the first American woman in nine years to win the long-track World Sprint Speedskating Championship. She set a personal best in the 500 meters (37.94 seconds) for the second straight day and had the fastest 1,000 meters in the women's field (1:14.18) to claim the world championship in Kearns, Utah.

The title, based on points from two days of 500- and 1,000-meter races, is the first in the event for a U.S. woman since Chris Witty won it in 1996. Witty is from West Allis, Wis.

Erben Wennemars of the Netherlands won the 1,000 meters in the day's final race to repeat as men's world sprint champion.

• Norway's Ole Einar Bjoerndalen posted his 50th career victory in a World Cup biathlon, winning in the 12.5-kilometer pursuit in Anterselva, Italy. France's Sandrine Bailly won the women's 10-kilometer pursuit.

• Hannu Manninen of Finland won a World Cup Nordic combined event in Liberec, Czech Republic, and Todd Lodwick of Steamboat Springs, Colo., finished third.

• Jakub Janda won a ski jump in Titisee-Neustadt, Germany, the first World Cup victory in ski jumping in 10 years for the Czech Republic. World Cup leader Janne Ahonen of Finland was seventh.

• Albert Demtschenko became the first Russian to capture the overall luge World Cup title, winning in Winterberg, Germany, for his fourth victory of the season.

• Martin Annen of Switzerland won his second straight World Cup bobsled race in Cesana Pariol, Italy.

Annen guided Switzerland 1 to victory in the four-man event a day after winning the two-man competition.

• Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon will retire from competitive figure skating after next year's world championships in Calgary, Alberta.

The duo announced the decision after winning the Canadian ice-dance title for the third time.

Dubreuil and Lauzon have skated together since 1995.