Featured Image: Marco Odermatt. Credit: GEPA
The men kick off another race of giant slalom in Val D’Isère, France. In the past two giant slalom World Cup races, Alexander Steen Olsen (Norway) and Thomas Tumler (Switzerland) were triumphant.
Marco Odermatt, the reigning World Cup giant slalom globe winner, has experienced three successive did not finish (DNF) results in giant slalom events. However, following his initial run today, he is demonstrating potential to reclaim victory.
Bernhard Russi, Marco Odermatt’s coach, stated before the race in Beaver Creek “Marco lost patience. He wanted to win at the fourth gate and took a line that was too narrow and too direct.”
Nevertheless, he assured us that Marco’s team was making changes before this event to aim for the top of the podium again. This is a strong start today for the Swiss athlete.
Not far behind the lead, Henrik Kristofferesen of Norway finished +0.15 behind Odermatt in the first run. Kristoffersen achieved a podium in the first race of the season in Sölden and 5th in Beaver Creek. He will be pushing it for another GS win of his career on the second run.
Odermatt’s teammate, Loïc Meillard, is +0.32 behind the lead heading into the second run. He still remains in striking distance for a third giant slalom win of his career. Last year in Saalbach, Meillard finished the season with a GS win and is hoping for the same strong results this season.
Alexander Steen Olsen of Norway won the first giant slalom race of the season in Sölden. Unfortunately, he has been dealing with knee pain and wrote on social media before the event, “No race for me this weekend. At the moment I can’t trust my knee.” He hopes to return to racing in Alta Badia.
North Americans
River Radamus of the Stifel US Ski Team laid down a solid run and came through the finish +1.38 behind the lead. Radamus has started the season off on a successful note. He finished the Sölden giant slalom in 11th and Beaver Creek in 7th position, which instilled confidence in Radamus for this race.
His teammate, Tommy Ford, also heads into the second run, finishing the first +2.58 behind the leading time. In Sölden, Ford achieved 21st place; however, he did not complete the highly anticipated giant slalom event in Beaver Creek. He aims to deliver two strong performances today in order to improve his standings in the giant slalom rankings.
Patrick Kenney, an athlete representing Team Global Racing from the United States, demonstrated potential at the top of the course to secure a place in the second run; however, he sadly went out and did not finish.
Unfortunately, Erik Read of Alpine Canada Alpin and Bridger Gile of the Stifel US Ski Team did not qualify for the second run.
Other Notable Performances
The 31-year-old Luca Aerni of Switzerland started the day wearing bib 62 and was able to execute a strong first run to qualify for the second. He moved up into 30th position (+3.42) behind Odermatt. He will utilize running first on the second run to his advantage in hopes of securing his top giant slalom result to date.
The French athlete, Alban Elezi Cannaferina, kicked out of the start gate wearing bib 55. This is the athlete’s second time competing in a World Cup event, and he was pushing it from top to bottom. He heads into the second run in 23rd position, +2.48 behind the winning time.
Top 30 Results
Analysis of the Top Three
Analysis of the Top North Americans
About the Author: Ellie Hartman
