Story highlights Aksel Lund Svindal second in Are downhill

Norwegian denied by fellow countryman Kjetil Jansrud

Just 0.02 seconds separated the pair

Are, Sweden (CNN) In the final race of his career, Aksel Lund Svindal made sure his last downhill was a knee-knocking thriller.

Only 0.02 seconds separated the Olympic downhill champion from his teammate Kjetil Jansrud who took gold, crossing the line in 1:19.98 in difficult conditions to win his first world title.

There was a moment during his run, with the snow falling and fog reducing visibility, that Svindal nipped ahead of race leader Jansrud and looked on course for a third world downhill title, but a wobble in the middle section set him back and the 36-year-old had to settle for silver, just as Jansrud did when Svindal took Olympic gold last year.

Arms aloft, the Norwegian, the sentimental favorite, tilted his head back and looked up to the white sky and savored the applause near the finish line for one last time. Norwegian flags popped up like toast with his compatriots having traveled to the Swedish resort of Are in numbers to show their appreciation to one of their country's biggest sports stars.

Svindal looks skywards after the men's downhill

"It's a close race but it's a great race. I'm very happy with this," Svindal told reporters afterwards, admitting he had felt nervous in the build-up to his final race.

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