Featured Image: Kvitfjell day two World Cup downhill podium. Credit: GEPA
The men kicked off the last World Cup downhill race of the regular season in Kvitfjell, Norway. Today marked the 80th World Cup race held in Kvitfjell.
The field competed on the Olympiabakken track yesterday, where Dominik Paris of Italy hopped back in the spotlight and continued to show his dominance on the Kvitfjell track.
Although Marco Odermatt did not take the lead on the initial day, he extended his point lead in the downhill World Cup standings ahead of his closest rival and teammate, Franjo Von Allmen.
Today, the battle between the two Swiss athletes, Von Allmen and Odermatt, continued. However, Von Allmen was able to turn up the heat and achieve victory over the reigning downhill globe winner.
This narrowed the points, with Odermatt leading by only 83 points; thus, the fight for the discipline title will go into the last race of the season at the World Cup Finals.
The battle has not hindered their teammate comradery. Odermatt stated, “We are still friends even if we are fighting for the same globe. We have such a good atmosphere on the team, and we still took the chairlift together today, and although we are rivals for the two minutes, it does not change how we are off the slope.”
Von Allmen’s Stellar Victory
Von Allmen, the young Swiss star, had only raced on the Kvitfjell track once before yesterday, earning 5th place last season on this hill. Yesterday, he was able to secure 4th, and today he went full send and achieved another downhill victory.
The 23-year-old is having an outstanding season, having secured the title of Downhill World Cup Champion. He has now notched his second downhill victory and third overall win in his World Cup career, all accomplished this season.
He expressed that his success this season has been pretty unexpected. He stated, “It has been pretty unexpected for me, but in the end, I like it, of course, and I have been really happy with the season. I have tried to enjoy it as much as I can.”
“It feels amazing, especially after yesterday. I was not as confident on the soft snow,” Von Allmen stated.
He continued, “It is still amazing with this team, and the performance of the whole team is good. It makes the whole race even more fun.”
A Swiss Podium Sweep
The Swiss speed team continued to unveil their dominance in the initial Kvitfjell downhill, stacking four in the top 5. Today, they maintained their impressive performance with a Swiss podium sweep.
Marco Odermatt, the reigning downhill globe winner, came into today with confidence after his first podium on the Kvitjell downhill track.
He stated before his run, “It was really cool to have a podium here in the Kvitfjell downhill. It was something new, and I did well on this slope. I found the key for this slope, so that will help me today.”
Odermatt kicked out of the start slightly off the line, getting bucked around in the initial section of the course. However, he brought it back and, with confidence, attacked the lower sections. He concluded the day with another 2nd-place result.
Odermatt stated, “This is another amazing result, and I will totally take it.”
“At the beginning of the week I knew I had to gain some points in front of Franjo in the fight for the globe, so for sure yesterday the second place felt a little better than today. I had the feeling that I needed to fight for the victory today, and that is why I think I attacked a little more,” he explained.
The other Swiss athlete, Stefan Rogentin, has found his stride this season on the Kvitfjell track. Before the event, his best result in downhill was a 10th-place result.
However, today he put down another solid run to achieve a consecutive 3rd place finish on this track.
Rogentin stated, “An unbelievable day again.”
“It is really hard to say what is the main key to our success. Of course, we have the moment on our side, and we have a really competitive team. We have a lot of really good athletes, and we push each other really hard,” Rogentin expressed.
Hrobat and Sejersted Conclude the Top 5
The Slovenian, Miha Hrobat, came into today in 4th on the downhill World Cup standings. This season, the 30-year-old has achieved two 3rd-place results. This marks another top 5 for the athlete.
Adrian Smiseth Sejersted of Norway threw down a personal best of the season in downhill, finishing in 5th place. Yesterday, he narrowly missed the top 5, ending up in 6th. Today, however, he delivered a strong and steady performance that propelled him into 5th place.
Sejersted stated, “It was great to see green lights in the finish. It was awesome to see lots of Norwegian flags. I was hoping for a podium, but I was 0.13 too slow.”
North Americans
The North Americans struggled overall to find the top 15. However, James (Jack) Crawford of Alpine Canada Alpin was the athlete to succeed in finding a leaderboard result.
Crawford got caught up yesterday on a gate, so today he wanted to achieve an error-free run.
He came off the first jump a little wild and got a little bounced out of the line before the Tommy Moe section but held it together. He accelerated in the final, gliding section of the course and came through +0.87 behind Von Allmen, achieving 8th place.
This was an impressive finish for the athlete as he expressed that he struggled with confidence coming into today after his mistake yesterday. He explained, “After yesterday, I had a little bit of a scare coming into the bottom section. The essence of my season has kind of been after my crash in Beaver Creek, not having full confidence every day. So, after yesterday having that close call, I didn’t bring the willingness to send at the bottom to really contend.”
“However, I think it was a good day. I finally feel very comfortable on my skis,” Crawford stated.
Ryan Cochran-Siegle of the Stifel US Ski Team was the top athlete from the United States, finishing in 19th place (+1.67).
Cochran-Siegle stated, “I liked how I skied, but the conditions definitely changed. I think there was more response and a bit more consistency from top to bottom. I think there were moments that I was doing the right things. It is just a matter of putting it together from top to bottom.”
His teammate, Kyle Negomir, achieved his first top 30 in the discipline this season, concluding the day in 25th position. Also, marking his second-best finish in downhill in his World Cup career.
Alpine Canada Alpine athlete Jeffrey Read also achieved a personal-best downhill this season and his first 2025 top 30 in the discipline.
Stifel US Ski Team athlete, Jared Goldberg, snuck into the top 30. This marked his fourth top 30 this season. He stated, “I am giving myself the ‘most improved’ on the bottom because today I had the second speed on the last split, and yesterday I probably had the last speed because I messed up the Tommy Moe.”
He continued, “I had a string of bad races and was a little unlucky, so it was tough to really risk it and push forward as much as I could.”
“It was a step in the right direction, but I have some work to do this summer,” Goldberg concluded.
Even though his teammate, Bryce Bennette, didn’t crack the top 30 today, he still enters the World Cup Finals ranked 13th in the downhill World Cup standings.
Nejc Naralocnik Moves Up
The 26-year-old Slovenian, Nejc Naralocnik, donned bib number 38 and surged into 7th place with an impressive run. This achievement represents a significant milestone for him, as it is his best finish on the World Cup circuit to date.
He stated, “After Saalbach, my 14th place in the championship, I just got an extra boost of confidence. It is a different sport when you are mentally relaxed; everything is much easier. I was super relaxed and enjoyed every turn.”
The Top 30
Analysis of the Top 3
North Americans in the Top 30
About the Author: Ellie Hartman
