Odermatt wins superior. (Video: SRF)
Marco Odermatt has had a wonderful winter so far. The 24-year-old leads the overall World Cup by a large margin. With over 100 points he is ahead of Austrian Matthias Mayer. Alexis Pinturault from France, the overall World Cup winner last season, is already far behind. On Sunday he spoke of an “inner tiredness” that he had had for several months.
And so Odermatt wanted to go on the podium for the next time in the giant slalom in Alta Badia on Monday and further extend the lead in the overall World Cup. He did it. While Odermatt still missed victory on Sunday, he grabbed the third win of the season in the fourth giant slalom of the season. His victory? An absolute show of power. But from the beginning.
More than a second ahead
In the first run he started the race with starting number 2. And he showed a great run. In the first section he lost a little time, but then he accelerated. The result: 1st place ahead of Luca de Aliprandini, who started the race first and also showed a very strong run. The friend of the Swiss ski star Michelle Gisin and Odermatt drove in their own wonder league. Third-placed Alexander Schmid was almost a second behind (+0.86 seconds).
And so Odermatt had the best chance of winning the second run. He used this. He got a huge run out of it. In the end, the 24-year-old was more than a second ahead of de Aliprandini (2nd) and Alexander Schmid (3rd).
«Hopefully it will always go on like this. It’s incredible. I noticed on Sunday that there was still a small percentage, it could be even better, ”said Odermatt, visibly happy after his triumph. “I just try to keep a cool head, a lot is happening right now. Now the bottle is a little empty, now I’m looking forward to a few days off. “
Murisier also in the top 10
Justin Murisier, who was 10th after the starting run, was meanwhile sixth thanks to a mega finish in the second run. And Loïc Meillard? Before the second run he shouted: “Allez, allez, allez.” Pushed himself. In the upper section he also showed a good run, but then one mistake ruined his speed and run (21st). In the finish area you could only hear a loud “Aaaaaaaaaah!”, Then he disappeared. (nih)