ZAGREB, Croatia — Bode Miller was disqualified because of the size of his ski boots after the opening leg of the World Cup slalom today.

Miller, the defending overall World Cup champion, finished the first run in 29th place but was disqualified for ski boots that were too high, the International Ski Federation said.

Jean-Baptiste Grange of France had the fastest time, finishing in 53.91 seconds on the icy and foggy Crveni Spust course. Ivica Kostelic of Croatia was second and Ted Ligety of the United States lost time after an early mistake to finish 16th.

Grange won the season-opening slalom in November in Levi, Finland, and leads the discipline standings ahead of Kostelic.