Bode Miller earns first victory in nearly two years

He's back ...

Less than four months after making his highly publicized return to the U.S. ski team, Bode Miller posted his first victory in nearly two years by winning a World Cup super-combined event in Switzerland today.

Miller, who skipped recent World Cup races because of a right ankle injury, won in the event with a combined time of 2 minutes, 35.96 seconds. He won the downhill in 1:46.91 and posted a solid run in the slalom to take his 32nd career World Cup victory -- his first since March 2008.

"Winning was great," Miller told the Associated Press. "It's a great time of the year for me to be moving forward."

Despite the victory, Miller wasn't exactly impressed with his skiing. He said he made four big mistakes in his downhill run, forcing him to be aggressive on the slalom.

Switzerland's Carlo Janka finished 0.37 seconds back for second place. American Ted Ligety finished fifth.

Miller moved up to ninth place in the World Cup point standings following the win. He is third in the super-combined standings.

-- Austin Knoblauch

Photo: Bode Miller celebrates on the podium after winning a World Cup super-combined event in Switzerland today. Credit: Alessandro Trovati / Associated Press