WENGEN, Switzerland — The dominant Swiss men’s ski team celebrated a significant victory at their home World Cup super-G event on Friday, with Franjo von Allmen achieving his inaugural career win, despite Marco Odermatt suffering an unexpected setback.
In a surprising turn of events, Odermatt, who has been a formidable force in skiing, placed outside the top five in a super-G for the first time since March 2022, marking a streak of 20 races. He finished in seventh position, lagging more than one second behind the leader.
Von Allmen, who is enjoying a standout season, clinched the win by finishing just 0.10 seconds ahead of Austrian veteran Vincent Kriechmayr. Meanwhile, Swiss teammate Stefan Rogentin secured third place, trailing 0.58 seconds behind in what was the longest super-G race of the current season. Von Allmen’s impressive winning time of 1 minute and 47.65 seconds surpassed some of the downhill race timings.
The conditions favored downhill specialists on a sun-drenched day at the renowned Lauberhorn hill, where Von Allmen reached speeds exceeding 133 kph (83 mph) on the Haneggschuss straight. Having recently been the runner-up in two downhill races within the past month, Von Allmen is poised to compete fiercely alongside Odermatt during the classic downhill event scheduled for Saturday, an event that is a hallmark of the Swiss sports calendar. Odermatt was the victor in that race a year prior.
Following the race, Von Allmen received enthusiastic congratulations from American skier Ryan Cochran-Siegle, who humorously encouraged the rising Swiss star to celebrate the victory well into the night.
Conversely, Odermatt, a three-time defending overall World Cup champion, experienced an unusually sluggish performance during the super-G. His struggle was evident as he mismanaged his tactics through a critical stretch of twisting turns typical of the Wengen course.
With 13 out of his 42 career World Cup race victories in the super-G category, Odermatt faced his poorest result in this discipline since March 2022, when he finished 28th at Kvitfjell, Norway. “It was difficult for me today,” Odermatt expressed to Swiss broadcaster RTS. “I wasn’t always on the right line and lost speed.”
On Saturday, Odermatt will aim to redeem himself on the iconic 4.45-kilometer (2 ¾-mile) downhill course, known for being the longest and most unpredictable on the World Cup circuit, with winning times typically around 2 minutes and 25 seconds.
