FLACHAU, Austria — Swiss skier Camille Rast celebrated her second World Cup victory of the season on Tuesday, securing a remarkable 1-2 finish for Switzerland alongside teammate Wendy Holdener during a thrilling night slalom event.
This latest achievement has catapulted Rast back to the top of both the slalom standings and the overall season rankings. With renowned slalom competitors Mikaela Shiffrin and Petra Vlhova sidelined due to injuries, Rast made an impressive leap from eighth place in her final run, finishing ahead of Holdener by a mere 0.16 seconds.
Notably, Rast’s triumph marks the first time since Frida Hansdotter’s victory in 2017 that a skier other than Shiffrin or Vlhova has triumphed in this storied annual floodlit event. Rast expressed her delight, stating, “I saw yesterday on Instagram that Mikaela and Petra won the last six races here. Then I’m really happy today to make a new name on the list.”
Sweden’s Olympic giant slalom champion, Sara Hector, came in third, finishing 0.38 seconds behind Rast. Meanwhile, local favorite Katharina Liensberger, who had a substantial lead after the first run, faltered in her second attempt down the Griessenkar course, ultimately dropping to fourth place.
This season has been a breakthrough for Rast, who had not been on a World Cup podium prior to this year. She has now notched two victories, a third place, and a couple of fourth and fifth spots in her slalom campaign. Her inaugural win was at Killington, Vermont, last December, where she also led a Swiss 1-2 finish with Holdener.
Rast leads the overall standings with a 26-point advantage over Hector and dominates the slalom rankings, holding a 60-point lead over Holdener. Reflecting on her success, Rast said, “I never expected this, I just enjoy it. But I go day by day from here.”
Zrinka Ljutic, the discipline leader entering the race after back-to-back slalom wins, faced disappointment as she failed to qualify for the second run. The Croatian skied into trouble early and finished 3.70 seconds behind Rast.
Paula Moltzan had the best finish among American athletes, securing sixth place and finishing 0.73 seconds behind Rast. Shiffrin, who claimed victories in the season’s opening two slalom races, is currently recuperating from abdominal surgery following a deep wound she sustained in a Giant Slalom crash while pursuing her 100th career win. As of last week, she has resumed training on snow, but there is no timetable for her return to competition.
Vlhova has been recovering from knee surgery for the past year. Lindsey Vonn, who has made a notable comeback to World Cup racing this season after nearly a six-year hiatus, is focused on speed events like downhill and super-G, with plans to race next weekend in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.
Swiss allrounder Michelle Gisin finished in 23rd place. The two-time Olympic champion in Alpine combined indicated prior to the race that this would be her final slalom as she intends to concentrate her efforts on the remaining three disciplines. Gisin’s only World Cup victory took place at a night race in another Austrian location, Semmering, four years ago, breaking a sequence of 28 slalom competitions won exclusively by Shiffrin or Vlhova.
