World champ Meillard wins World Cup slalom to close in on discipline leader Kristoffersen

HAFJELL, Norway (AP) — World champion Loic Meillard won the season's penultimate men's World Cup slalom Sunday as the Swiss skier boosted his chances of taking the discipline title.

Meillard overcame a big mistake early in his final run and held on to his first-leg lead as he beat Atle Lie McGrath of Norway by 0.21 seconds. Lucas Pinheiro Braathen was 0.47 back in third.

“It was a wild second run with a few mistakes. I just wanted to fully attack, maybe even too much,” said Meillard, who also won Saturday’s giant slalom on the same hill. “It’s a dream for a tech skier to win both days, GS and slalom, and for it to happen this weekend is pretty amazing.”

Meillard's sole previous career World Cup victory in slalom came in Aspen, Colorado a year ago, though he took gold at the worlds in Austria in February.

Henrik Kristoffersen, who leads the discpline standings, won both the GS and the slalom at the previous tech weekend in Slovenia two weeks ago.

On Sunday, the Norwegian placed fifth and saw his advantage over Meillard reduced to 47 points with only the season-ending race remaining at the World Cup finals in Sun Valley, Idaho on March 27.

Kristoffersen will secure the title if he finishes third or better in that race, regardless of Meillard's result.

“It’s still a big gap,” Meillard said. “So, he has to fail it a little bit and I have to do something very special like today. So, it’s really a nice fight until the end.”

The only other racer left with a chance to win the season title is Clement Noel. The Olympic champion from France finished seventh and trails Kristoffersen by 86 points. A race win is worth 100 points.

Kristoffersen has won the slalom title three times in his career, most recently in 2022, but it would be the first career slalom globe for either Meillard or Noel.

Last year’s slalom champion, Manuel Feller, skied out in the first run, but the Austrian was already out of contention for the season title before the race.

Racing on a hill where he skied many times in his youth, Pinheiro Braathen earned his fifth podium result since taking a year off and returning to the circuit this season following a switch from the Norwegian to the Brazilian federation.

“I had so many training runs here, so many of my fundamentals come from here, Hafjell,” said Pinheiro Braathen, who is chasing Brazil’s first-ever triumph in a top-level ski race.

Hafjell hosted World Cup races for the first time since 2003.

Swiss star Marco Odermatt, who locked up the overall and giant slalom titles on Saturday, does not compete in slaloms.

The race wrapped up the regular World Cup season ahead of the finals for both men and women in Sun Valley, which open with the speed events next weekend.

AP skiing: https://apnews.com/hub/alpine-skiing

Switzerland's Loic Meillard celebrates on the podium after winning an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Switzerland's Loic Meillard competes on his way to win an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanni Zenoni)

Switzerland's Loic Meillard, center, winner of an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, celebrates with second-placed Norway's Atle Lie McGrath, left, and third-placed Brazil's Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Brazil's Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, right, and Norway's Atle Lie McGrath look at Switzerland's Loic Meillard descending during an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Switzerland's Loic Meillard, right, winner of an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, and third-placed Brazil's Lucas Pinheiro Braathen congratulate each other at the finish area, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Switzerland's Loic Meillard celebrates at the finish area of an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Austria's Manuel Feller competes in an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

France's Clement Noel competes in an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Norway's Henrik Kristoffersen competes in an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Brazil's Lucas Pinheiro Braathen competes in an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Switzerland's Loic Meillard competes in an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Hafjell, Norway, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

KOCANI, North Macedonia (AP) — A massive fire tore through a nightclub in North Macedonia ’s eastern town of Kocani early Sunday, killing 59 people and injuring 155, authorities said.

The blaze broke out around 2:30 a.m. local time during a concert by a local pop group at Club Pulse, Interior Minister Panche Toshkovski told reporters. Officials said 39 of the dead had so far been identified, adding that 18 of those injured were in critical condition.

Toshkovski said following an initial assessment that pyrotechnics likely caused the roof to catch fire. Videos showed sparkling pyrotechnics on the stage hitting the ceiling followed by scenes of chaos inside the club, with young people running through the smoke as the musicians urged people to escape as quickly as possible.

Throughout Sunday, relatives gathered in front of hospitals and city offices in Kocani, some 115 kilometers (72 miles) east of the capital, Skopje, begging authorities for more information. Local resident Dragi Stojanov was informed that his 21-year-old son Tomce had died in the fire.

“He was my only child. I don’t need my life anymore... 150 families have been devastated," he said. “Children burnt beyond recognition. There are corpses, just corpses inside (the club).” Condolences poured in from leaders around Europe as well as from the office of Pope Francis who has been in hospital for the last month, where he is fighting double pneumonia. Health Minister Arben Taravari said he had received offers of assistance from neighboring countries, including Albania, Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also sent messages of support. “I wish those who were injured a speedy recovery. Ukraine mourns alongside our (North) Macedonian friends on this sad day,” Zelenskyy wrote in a post on X. In Skopje, health officials said the injured have been taken to hospitals around the country, many being treated for severe burns and smoke inhalation. The effort was being assisted by multiple volunteer organizations.

“All our capabilities have been put to use, in a maximum effort to save as many lives as possible of the young people involved in this tragedy,” Taravari told reporters, at times looking visibly shaken.

The fire is the worst tragedy in recent memory to befall the landlocked nation, whose population is less than 2 million, and the latest in a slew of deadly nightclub fires around the world.

President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova visited burn victims at a hospital in Skopje and spoke to parents waiting outside the building.

“It's terrible ... hard to believe how this happened,” she said, her voice halting with emotion. “We must give these young people courage to continue.”

The club was in an old building that was previously a carpet warehouse and has been running for several years, according to local media MKD.

The fire caused the roof of the single-story building to partially collapse, revealing the charred remains of wooden beams and debris. Police cordoned off the site and sent in evidence gathering teams in an operation also involving state prosecutors.

State prosecutor Ljubco Kocevski said several people were being questioned by police but gave no further details and stressed that the cause of the blaze was still being investigated.

Interior ministry officials said authorities would investigate the venue’s licensing and safety provisions, adding that the government had a “moral responsibility” to help prosecute anyone responsible. Police have arrested one man already, but he didn't provide details on the person's involvement.

Pyrotechnics have often been the cause of deadly fires in nightclubs, including the one at the Colectiv club in Bucharest, Romania, in 2015 in which 64 people died.

AP writers from across Europe contributed.

Police officers investigate a nightclub after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

Police officers block a road near a nightclub after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

Police officers block a road near a nightclub after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

CORRECTS CITY TO SKOPJE - People wait in front of the hospital in Skopje, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025, after a massive fire in a nightclub in the town of Kocani. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

Prosecutors arrive at the scene of a massive fire in a nightclub in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

A person makes a telephone call in front of the hospital in Skopje, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025, after a massive fire in a nightclub in the town of Kocani. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

A firefighter inspects a nightclub after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

CORRECTS CITY TO SKOPJE - People wait in front of the hospital in Skopje, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025, after a massive fire in a nightclub in the town of Kocani. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

Macedonian Interior Minister Pance Toskovski speaks to media after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

Police officers investigate a nightclub after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

Police officers investigate a nightclub after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

A firefighter inspects a nightclub after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

Police officers investigate a nightclub after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

A firefighter inspects a nightclub after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

Rescue workers stand in front of a club after massive fire broke out early Sunday in Kocani, North Macedonia, March 16, 2025. (Kocani TV via AP)

Rescue workers stand in front of a club after massive fire broke out early Sunday in Kocani, North Macedonia, March 16, 2025. (Kocani TV via AP)