Austria's Christoph Gruber charged to victory in a World Cup super-G, staking an early claim to an Olympic gold medal.

Gruber beat team-mate Hannes Reichelt, while unheralded Slovenian Ales Gorza was third on a course that will be used at the Vancouver Winter Games in 2010.

In a tight race, Gruber clocked one minute, 26.60 seconds down the sun-bathed Dave Murray Downhill piste to secure a fifth career victory and his first since 2006.

He was followed across the finish line by Reichelt in 1:26.63 while Gorza notched his first podium finish with 1:26.71.

"I can't wait to get back here in two years," Gruber said. "It's for sure good, especially since this is the only race on this slope before the Olympic Games so it is a good feeling to win here.

"Hopefully I'm here at the Olympic Games in two years."

Gruber's three other super-G wins all came at Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, while his resume also includes a giant slalom in Bormio, Italy.

Despite his victory, Gruber's presence at the Vancouver Winter Games is far from secure, with the battle to earn a coveted spot on the Austrian Olympic squad as ferocious as the race for a gold medal.

The course drew widespread praise from racers, including Austria's 1998 Olympic super-G champion Hermann Maier, who failed to finish but said: "It's a nice course, it should be very interesting."

Switzerland's Didier Cuche came seventh and remains top of the discipline standings with 280 points, while Gruber climbed to second on 225.

Overall World Cup leader Bode Miller failed to complete his run allowing Benjamin Raich to close the gap at the top. The Austrian finished 11th and cut the American's lead to just 69 points.

Miller, who split from the U.S. squad before the start of the season, produced a heart-stopping run until finally skidding off course midway down after slamming into a gate and injuring his left hand.

"There's a lot of terrain," said Miller, who only arrived in the resort on Wednesday evening and did not take part in the inspection.

"It looks good, from what little I saw, but it will all be different in two years."

The super-G was the first of four Olympic test events scheduled this week for Whistler Mountain.

The women take over the piste on Friday for a downhill while the men return for a giant slalom on Saturday and the women wrap up the action with a super-combined on Sunday.

Reuters