Maier Is King of the Hill

Hermann Maier completed a great comeback from a motorcycle accident three years ago in which he nearly lost a leg, winning the World Cup Alpine skiing overall title Saturday.

Bode Miller ended up winning the giant slalom title after the event in Sestriere, Italy, was canceled because of heavy snowfall and thick fog.

The race was called midway through the second run, giving Miller the discipline title and Maier his fourth overall crown.

Miller, of Franconia, N.H., was trying to become the first American man to win the overall title since Phil Mahre in 1983.

Miller had crashed on the first run, making a big mistake shortly after the first split and ended up on his back with his skis in the air. But he ended up winning his first title by 61 points over Finland’s Kalle Palander.

Maier finished the season with 1,265 points, 42 ahead of defending champion Stephan Eberharter of Austria, who will not race in today’s season-ending slalom.

Meanwhile, Anja Paerson of Sweden clinched her first overall World Cup women’s title with a sixth-place finish at Sestriere in the season’s final slalom race.

Paerson was 0.68 of a second behind winner Marlies Schild, of Austria, who finished in 1 minute 41.82 seconds, but far in front of her only challenger for the overall title -- Renate Goetschl.

Goetschl, of Austria, finished last, 6.10 seconds behind. Sarah Schleper of Vail, Colo., finished second, 0.21 of a second back.

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American Shani Davis won the men’s 1,500-meter gold medal at the world single-distance speedskating championships in Seoul with a time of 1 minute 48.64 seconds.

On the second day of the three-day event, Germany’s Claudia Pechstein won the 3,000 meters in 4:13.46 seconds. Manli Wang of China won the women’s 500 in 76.88.

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Pro Football

Cornerback Ty Law wants to leave the New England Patriots after playing a key role in the team’s drive toward a Super Bowl championship.

“Right now, it’s not about money,” Law told the Boston Globe. “That bridge is burned. I no longer want to be a Patriot.... I can’t even see myself putting on that uniform again.”

Law, battling with the team over a contract extension, said he had “irreconcilable differences” with the club and told Coach Bill Belichick and vice president of player personnel Scott Pioli he wanted to play elsewhere.

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Motor Racing

Bobby Hamilton passed Mike Skinner in the final turn, then held on when they bumped heading toward the finish line to win the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series EasyCare 200 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Skinner ended up sliding sideways across the line in his Toyota but still finished second in front of rookie David Reutimann, also in a Toyota.

Hamilton, in a Dodge, rallied from a lap down for his fifth career victory in the series.

Yamaha’s Chad Reed raced to his eighth THQ World Supercross GP/THQ AMA Supercross Series victory of the season at Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis. Kawasaki’s James Stewart clinched his first THQ AMA 125cc Eastern Regional Supercross Series championship.

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Track and Field

Louisiana State became the first school to win the men’s and women’s team titles in the same year at the NCAA Indoor track and field championships at Fayetteville, Ark.

Laura Gerraughty of North Carolina broke the collegiate shotput record for the second time in two weeks to retain her title. Her throw of 62 feet 10 inches was half an inch farther than the mark she had in winning the U.S. Indoor title in Boston on Jan. 29.

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Miscellany

John Henry Williams, son of baseball Hall of Famer Ted Williams, wants his body frozen and kept alongside his father’s corpse. The son’s will dictates that his body be “cryonically suspended” by Alcor Life Extension Foundation in Scottsdale, Ariz., the St. Petersburg Times reported. John Henry Williams died of leukemia March 6.

Kjetil Backen of Norway kept his lead in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, but a pack of seasoned mushers was not far behind entering the last quarter of the 1,100-mile race from Anchorage to Nome.