LA VILLA, Italy — Marco Odermatt has returned to his dominant form.
On Saturday, he secured his first victory at Val Gardena in the downhill event and followed it up in impressive fashion with a giant slalom win on Sunday at the Gran Risa, cementing his status as one of Switzerland’s foremost male skiers.
This latest success marks Odermatt’s 41st World Cup win, making him the Swiss men’s team leader in total victories, surpassing Pirmin Zurbriggen. The overall record for Swiss skiers remains at 55, held by Vreni Schneider.
“This is incredible,” Odermatt expressed. “Being recognized as the best Swiss alpine skier ever is surreal. Pirmin Zurbriggen represents the peak of our skiing history, so this moment is truly significant.”
During a challenging first run in Alta Badia, Odermatt finished third but adopted a more aggressive approach in the second run, thereby achieving back-to-back giant slalom wins after experiencing a rocky start to the season.
“Every run presents its own challenges down here,” he noted. “This morning, conditions were tough with changes that made the run quite challenging. However, I felt more confident after inspecting the course. I could see improvements, which allowed me to stick to my plan and ski aggressively without much risk.”
Odermatt completed the race, beating France’s Léo Anguenot by 0.85 seconds. Anguenot’s strong performance in his second run propelled him from ninth place to successfully claim his first podium finish in the World Cup, marking his first time in the top 10.
Alexander Steen Olsen finished third, 0.88 seconds behind Odermatt, just ahead of the first-run leader, Filip Zubcic.
Olympic champion Odermatt has dazzled on the Gran Risa, winning five of the last six giant slalom races held there. The only interruption in this impressive streak came from Lucas Pinheiro Braathen.
Nevertheless, Odermatt had shown signs of vulnerability in his favored discipline this year.
Last season, he dominated the giant slalom circuit, winning nine out of ten races, leading to his third consecutive crystal globe and overall title.
However, he faced challenges this season, failing to finish in March’s final event or the first two races of the new season before finally capturing his first giant slalom points with a victory in Val d’Isère last weekend.
Renowned as one of the most challenging courses on the circuit, the Gran Risa was further complicated by flat light effects, alongside numerous ruts and bumps, which improved slightly between the first and second runs.
“I excel in tough conditions, especially when it feels like a fight and requires smart skiing,” Odermatt commented.
Henrik Kristoffersen criticized the conditions after his first run, describing it as “dangerous” and “really bad,” questioning whether racing should have even been conducted that day.
Although he was fourth fastest after the first run, Kristoffersen ultimately dropped to ninth place.
Following his performance, Odermatt moved to the top of the giant slalom standings, pulling ahead of Kristoffersen, while also extending his overall lead to 121 points over the Norwegian.
Looking ahead, there will be a slalom event on Monday in Alta Badia before the men’s circuit heads to Bormio for speed events.