BORMIO, Italy - There were bear hugs, superlatives and inexpertly sprayed sparkling wine at the finish line on Friday when Lindsey Vonn struggled to get the cork out of a bottle of Italian bubbly on the awards stand before gleefully dousing her teammate and fellow Park City resident Ted Ligety.

''I know, it was slow coming off; I wasn't very good,'' Vonn said, mocking her own celebration skills.

But there was nothing slow about the top American skiers this season. It was the strongest showing ever for U.S. skiers with Vonn, Ligety and Bode Miller taking titles. Ligety won the giant slalom title, with Vonn adding downhill and Miller super combined.

"We're turning the world upside down in Alpine ski racing," said U.S. Alpine Director Jesse Hunt. "To have two Americans win the overall, it's a special deal. And it's by a number of different athletes. What it says is that we're here to stay and dominate alpine ski racing."

Under normal circumstances in the Alps, the story of the weekend for the United States would have been Ligety's winning the final giant slalom of the season in dramatic fashion to claim his first World Cup season title in the discipline.

Yet that impressive victory was overshadowed as Vonn and Bode Miller clinched the overall World Cup titles that stand for consistent achievement.

''What I did pales in comparison,'' Ligety said. Miller and Vonn received their large crystal globes Saturday to celebrate the first American sweep of overall ski titles in a quarter century.

They are the first Americans to win the overall in the same year since Phil Mahre and Tamara McKinney in 1983.

''The overall title is the biggest achievement you can have in skiing,'' said U.S. women's speed coach Alex Hoedlmoser. ''There's not a gold medal in the Olympics that can top that.

''You have to be consistently fast. It's not like the Olympics where it's a one-shot deal, it's the entire season. You have to be a very complete skier. In Austria, you would be a hero. All of America should be proud,'' added Hoedlmoser, who is Austrian.

Now, if only their compatriots at home - much more interested in baseball's spring training and the upcoming NCAA Tournament - had an understanding of what Miller's and Vonn's titles mean in the skiing world. But Vonn hardly sounded bitter.

''I think everyone can relate to a dream coming true,'' she said.

Men's Overall - Bode Miller

Women's Overall - Lindsey Vonn

Men's Combined - Bode Miller

Men's Giant Slalom - Ted Ligety

Women's Downhill - Lindsey Vonn

U.S. sweeps of World Cup overall titles

2008 - Bode Miller, Lindsey Vonn

1983 - Phil Mahre, Tamara McKinney