KRANJSKA GORA, Slovenia — In the men’s World Cup giant slalom competition on Saturday, Henrik Kristoffersen delivered an impressive opening run to position himself ahead of Marco Odermatt, continuing their noteworthy performances at the Kranjska Gora resort.
Both Kristoffersen, from Norway, and Odermatt, representing Switzerland, have a strong track record on the Podkoren course, each securing three victories in giant slalom events held there since 2019.
Kristoffersen, the world champion in 2019, edged out a lead of 0.15 seconds over Odermatt. He is pursuing his first victory in this discipline since his last win at this location in March 2022. Currently third in the season standings, Kristoffersen trails leader Odermatt by 81 points. Odermatt is renowned as an Olympic gold medalist and a three-time World Cup giant slalom champion.
Joan Verdu from Andorra remained competitive, sitting in third place with a need to close a gap of 0.52 seconds during the second run later that day. No other contender managed to finish within eight-tenths of a second from Kristoffersen’s top time.
World champion Raphael Haaser emerged as the highest-ranked Austrian in the standings, placing in eighth. This was his first race following his recent gold medal win in Saalbach-Hinterglemm two weeks prior.
The Austrian men’s team is enduring a challenging period, failing to secure any victories in the last 33 World Cup races. Their last triumph came in February 2024, when Manuel Feller won a slalom event. This current winless streak is their longest since they experienced 34 consecutive losses in the 1991-92 season.
