Alpine skiing-Switzerland's Meillard wins gold but it's heartbreak for McGrath

BORMIO, Italy, Feb 16 : The razor edge between joy and despair in Olympic sport was laid bare as Loic Meillard won Switzerland's first men's slalom gold since 1948, while Atle Lie McGrath was inconsolable after stumbling out of the race and into the forest - literally - on Monday.

Norway's McGrath, hoping to deliver gold in honour of his grandfather who died on the day of the opening ceremony, held a commanding 0.59-second lead after a faultless first leg held in driving snow.

Slalom world champion Meillard, second-fastest in the opening run, then put down a storming second effort to crank up the pressure on McGrath, the last of the top 30 to go down.

With gold in sight and requiring just 50 or so seconds of solid skiing, McGrath straddled a gate early in his run to blow his chance and leave the dominant Swiss team celebrating a fourth gold medal from the five men's events in Bormio.

"Crazy day, crazy Olympics. To have three races, three medals, and to top it with a gold it's perfect," Meillard, who also won silver in the team combined event and bronze in the super-G, said.

It was all too much for the heartbroken McGrath, however, who had spoken lovingly about how his grandfather Svein Lie, who died at the age of 83, had been his inspiration.

Throwing away his skis and poles, the slalom World Cup leader stomped across the Stelvio slope and waded through the snow into the adjacent trees to be alone with his thoughts.

Several minutes later, still stewing, he was escorted back down to the finish area in a police Ski-Doo, storming off without talking.

While attention was focussed on the U.S.-born McGrath's misery, the magnificent Meillard's performance cannot be overlooked. His second run was sensational as he won by 0.35 seconds