Austrian Triumph in Saalbach: Cornelia Huetter Overtakes Rivals to Win World Cup Downhill Title

Saalbach Austria March 23, The women’s downhill finals began with a delayed start due to wind. However, at the end of the day, Austrian Cornelia Huetter won and overtook Switzerland’s Lara Gut-Behrami to earn Austria’s second discipline title of the season.

Sunday was Huetter’s second career World Cup downhill victory and her first World Cup discipline season title. This season, eight different women won the eight World Cup downhills, making it perhaps the most exciting and dramatic 2023/24 title battle. No matter who won the downhill globe, it would be their first.

“This morning, I woke up, and I slept so bad, and I woke up, and I thought, ‘Give your best; it’s the last chance today for this season,’ and I did it,” Huetter said.

Chasing the globe

The first of the three women in title contention to ski was bib ten Austrian Stephanie Venier. She needed a fantastic run to threaten Gut-Behrami for the title, and even with the pressure, she could cross into second place and keep her hopes alive.

However, the next of the contenders to ski was her Austrian teammate Cornelia Huetter. At that moment, she only needed to finish in front of Venier to keep her title dream alive. She crossed the finish to a massive ovation in the first place. Huetter entered the day with a 71-point deficit to Gut-Beharami.

That left only season leader Lara Gut-Behrami at the start. She needed to score only 29 points, ninth place, to secure her fourth 2024 globe. Instead, she crossed in 11th and eventually finished the day 17th and out of the points.

The Austrian crowd erupted with joy. Huetter won the season downhill title in front of a home country crowd, which will undoubtedly party deep into the night.

“Of course when you are at the start, you just want to try to give your best and try to win everything you can win,” said Gut-Behrami, who did plenty of winning this season, with eight triumphs in three disciplines in a spectacular campaign.

Late start numbers benefit

There was concern that the warm temperature would slow the course as the race progressed. The concern escalated when a course worker fell after the second racer bib two Austria’s Christina Ager, causing a significant delay. However, Mother Nature had a different plan. The wind and incoming clouds increased the track’s speed and provided a tailwind at the bottom of the course. The day’s fastest times came from bibs 12, 18, and 17; there were only 21 starters.

Podium

Bib 18 of 21 Slovenian veteran Ilka Stuhec took advantage of the late conditions to fly on the bottom of the course and threaten the lead but take second (+0.17) behind the Austrian champion.

“I’m really, really relieved,” said Stuhec, who earned her second podium of the season. “It hasn’t been my best season so far; I was struggling quite a lot. It didn’t really come together as it should, so it was quite tough sometimes.

Italian Nicol Delago finished (0.01) faster than Ager to secure third place and complete the podium. She skied with bib 17 out of 21.

Click on images to enlarge

Since it was also the last race of the women’s World Cup season, Gut-Behrami was awarded the overall globe for the second time in her career. Gut-Behrami won the giant slalom, super-G, and overall titles this season.

Mowinckel’s final World Cup run

Today was the final World Cup race for retiring Norwegian Ragnhild Mowinckel, the most successful Norwegian woman in Alpine World Cup history, a career with four victories. Although she struggled to find speed on the course, the crowd, teammates, and competitors met her at the finish with heartfelt hugs and a roar of applause.

USA’s Jacqueline Wiles

Stifel US Ski Team’s Jacqueline Wiles was the only North American to race the final race of the women’s World Cup season. Wiles skied well, finishing among the top 15 and scoring points in her final World Cup race of the 2023/24 season. Wiles ended the day 13th and added 20 points to her total to earn her season’s rank of 13th.

In a thrilling conclusion to the women’s downhill finals in Saalbach, Austria, Cornelia Huetter’s remarkable performance saw her surge past two competitors to secure not only Austria’s second title of the season but also her second career World Cup downhill win and her first season discipline title. The intense 2023/24 battle for the downhill globe, featuring eight different winners throughout the season, culminated in a triumphant moment for Huetter and a celebration that resonated deeply with the Austrian crowd, concluding a remarkable season of alpine skiing excellence.

Women’s World Cup Finals results and Analysis of the fastest three and Stifel US Ski Team’s Jacqueline Wiles

Click on images to enlarge

Analysis of the fastest three and Stifel US Ski Team’s Jacqueline Wiles