(Wengen) Marco Odermatt finally scored his first downhill victory in his 36th attempt on the Alpine Skiing World Cup circuit on Thursday, after finishing second on eight occasions.
The Swiss, who has 29 career victories on the World Cup circuit in giant slalom and super-G, delivered an impeccable performance on an ideal day on the legendary Wengen track. He shaved 0.58 seconds off Frenchman Cyprien Sarrazin’s time. Aleksander Aamodt Kilde completed the podium, 0.81 seconds behind his eternal rival.
Cameron Alexander emerged as the top Canadian skier with his 24th place finish, 2.23 seconds behind Odermatt.
“It’s a dream, finally, to be able to sign my first career downhill victory here at home,” Odermatt told Swiss channel RTS. I was very motivated today. I took a lot of risks on the track. »
Odermatt won the gold medal at the World Championships last year, but he finished second eight times – including twice in Wengen – in the premier event of the Alpine Skiing World Cup.
His 30th career victory on the World Cup circuit, and his sixth this season, followed his 18 in giant slalom and 11 more in super-G. He also won gold in giant slalom at the 2022 Beijing Olympics.
These results were provisional since the last skiers who were to start from the starting gate in the second run were held back due to the fog that settled on the legendary Lauberhorn hill.
Odermatt should therefore pocket 100 ranking points, which could allow the two-time reigning general classification champion to widen the gap at the top to 372 points ahead of Marco Schwarz. The latter saw his season end abruptly when he crashed downhill last month in Bormio, Italy. Kilde, the holder of the big crystal globe last year, is third.
Thursday’s top three reflects this season’s downhill standings, which have been dominated by Kilde for the past two campaigns.
The four-race extended weekend in Wengen continues on Friday with a super-G, followed by another downhill on Saturday.
