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| - The final races of the men's alpine skiing World Cup at Kranjska Gora at the weekend has been scrapped because of the coronavirus threat, the International Ski Federation said on Thursday. "The races in Kranjska Gora will not be replaced on the World Cup calendar and the 2019-2020 season is officially finished," the federation said, citing health concerns for competitors and spectators. The ski resort in Slovenia, close to the Italian border, was to host a giant slalom and a slalom on Saturday and Sunday. As a result of the cancellation, Norway's Aleksander Kilde wins the World Cup overall title from Alexis Pinturault of France and third-placed Norwegian Henrik Kristoffersen. On Wednesday federation officials scrapped the final three races of the women's season, due to be held in the Swedish resort of Are. As a result, Italy's Federica Brignone was crowned overall women's champion ahead of Mikaela Shiffrin, who finished second after missing a month of the season following the death of her father. Ski officials had already cancelled the men's and women's World Cup finals scheduled to take place from March 16-22 in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, the country worst hit by the coronavirus outbreak in Europe. rg-tba/cw/gj
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