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13 years after Didier Cuche, Swiss-Ski is again the leader in giant slalom: Marco Odermatt secures the discipline classification in Kranjska Gora.
Marco Odermatt made it in the third to last giant slalom race of the season: With second place in the first of two races in Kranjska Gora, the man from Nidwalden secured the small crystal globe early.
It was evident early on that he was capable of giant slalom. As a total of 6 gold winners at junior world championships, he only has 2 titles in his special discipline. After his resounding success in Sochi in 2016, the man from Nidwalden doubled 2 years later at the home title fights in Davos. These were his first moments of glory in a meteoric rise that continues unabated to this day.
In the meantime, the amazing talent has long since become a polished diamond. At his third “giant” appearance at a major event, Odermatt was crowned Olympic champion at the Winter Games in Beijing in February. Before that, the young Swiss had finished 10th at the 2019 World Championships in Are and was eliminated in Cortina in 2021 as one of the favorites in the first run.
In the Chinese metropolis, the 24-year-old defied all odds – after the start in the speed disciplines didn’t go to his liking at all. The blond youngster kept his cool. As a razor-thin half-time leader (with a lead of 4 hundredths and more), he didn’t let himself be thrown off course by short-term program changes as a result of the bad weather and stayed at the top in what was probably the most important race of his career.
From the beginning passed through the tariff
Now Odermatt passed a different test in the World Cup: he won the small crystal globe in giant slalom, which is awarded to the most consistent athlete over an entire season. 8 races are included in the ranking this winter. The native of Central Switzerland put himself in position right from the start when he prevailed in the prologue in Sölden.
The dominator continued to collect points diligently up to the Winter Games, only not winning the first of two races in Alta Badia shortly before Christmas and found a conqueror in Henrik Kristoffersen (NOR), the “giant” discipline winner 2019/20. His triumph at the beginning of the year in Adelboden in front of a raging crowd was particularly emotional.
So now the designated winner of the overall ranking made everything clear at the penultimate station in Kranjska Gora and after this accolade can fully enjoy the World Cup final in Courchevel/Méribel (March 16th to 20th).
A long dry spell is coming to an end
After Heini Hemmi, Joël Gaspoz, Pirmin Zurbriggen (2 balls), Michael von Grünigen (4) and Didier Cuche, Odermatt is the sixth giant slalom discipline winner from Switzerland. In 2008/09, the man from Neuchâtel was the last Swiss Ski rider to top a technical discipline ranking (apart from the parallel ball after just 2 races for Loïc Meillard in 2020).
Last year, Odermatt was 51 points short of this award, instead she went to France thanks to Alexis Pinturault. But for a long time now there has been no getting past the new number 1 in the industry…