Winter Olymics: Three Austrian Winter Olympic golds provided a perfect counterweight to the extraordinary doping saga which continued to rock their team yesterday.

Michaela Dorfmeister, who won the women's super-G, and men's giant slalom winner Benjamin Raich brought the smile back on to Austrian faces with the Games entering its final week and a team win in the ski jumping gave them a further fillip.

The bizarre events took some of the shine off glittering performances from Raich, Dorfmeister and the ski jumping team which included Thomas Morgenstern who collected his second Turin Olympic title.

Dorfmeister had seemed not to realise she had clinched her second gold of the Games in the super-G until silver medallist Janica Kostelic came across to congratulate her.

Raich had earlier shot down the men's giant slalom course in Sestriere and stormed to the top of an Olympic podium for the first time.

Long an Alpine skiing powerhouse, Austria also took the bronze in both races, with Hermann Maier winning his second medal here after taking silver in the men's super-G. Alexandra Meissnitzer's bronze was the 32-year-old's first Olympic medal.

"I have wanted to win an Olympic race since I was a child," said Raich, who fell to the ground in relief when the last skier came past the post and his title was secured. "I am so relieved."

Ireland's Thomas Foley finished 31st after a remarkable 34 athletes failed to finish the first of the two runs.

A crash by the Dutch women's bobsleigh team, whose sled rolled over and crossed the finishing line upside down, drew the limelight from Germany's top two spots in the first day of competition yesterday.

The Netherlands I sled, driven by Ilse Broeders, flipped on its side coming out the 14th of the Cesana track's 19 curves in the first of the day's two runs.

The bright orange bob kept sliding down the ice and then rolled over, reaching the finish upside down. When it finally stopped, Broeders and brakewoman Jeannette Pennings, whose helmets had been dragging along the ice, were able to get out of the sled and walk away.

Pennings complained of a sore shoulder and Broeders of bruises but neither appeared to have sustained any serious injury.