On the last weekend preceding Christmas, men’s alpine speed specialists traditionally meet in the South Tyrolean Dolomites. On Friday and Saturday, they race on the classical Saslong piste in Val Gardena, while on Sunday and Monday, giant slalom and slalom events take place on the scary and thrilling Gran Risa in Alta Badia.
Ladies will also focus on speed this weekend. Still, only super-G will take place in the luxurious Swiss resort St. Moritz. Let us move to Switzerland first.
St. Moritz – the Historical Olympic Track
In St. Moritz, ladies will go down the famous track of Engiadina. The Super-G starts at 2,590 meters above sea level, is 2500 meters long, and lets women go as fast as 100 km/h at the very start. The surrounding Alps provide a stunning panorama, one of the things spectators love about the races in St. Moritz. There will be two super-G events, and the favorites are clear.
First, Sofia Goggia, who showed superb form last week in Beaver Creek, finished second in the downhill and won the super-G. Then Lara Gut-Behrami, who will indeed strive to please the local fans, performed fantastically last week. Corinne Suter, another Swiss, did not appear that good in her comeback in Colorado but can surprise the home crowd with a thrill this week. And Austrian ladies will indeed try to steal some points from the Swiss in their backyard and have a good chance to do so, with Cornelia Hütter maintaining her spectacular form from last year. Ariane Raedler finished on the podium in the previous super-G race and will be hungry to confirm her result.
All eyes will also follow the comeback of Lindsey Vonn, who managed to pick up points in FIS races in Copper Mountain, earned herself a wild card, and is allowed to race in the World Cup this week. In Beaver Creek, where she went as a forerunner, Vonn claimed that for the first time in fifteen years, she felt no pain while racing, that her artificial knee might be an advantage over her damaged and operated one. And she performed pretty well. So, let us see what she does on the race day.
Val Gardena – the Classical Tricky Saslong
Saslong is a famous track, especially as it is tough to maintain speed on the slope. The winner needs to know how to glide and jump, as there are many jumps and bums. Most notorious are the Camel Humps, a series of three humps that can throw athletes as high as 4 meters. Then there is the Ciaslat, a demanding technical part with both bumps and ripples.
The weather is perfect now. Nevertheless, the athletes complained during the official training that the slope was too soft, making them ski slower. However, as temperatures should sink below zero during the following days, this will surely change.
The biggest favorite for both the super-G and downhill races is the Swiss superstar Marco Odermatt, who won the last super-G in Beaver Creek, where he also finished second in the downhill. The Saslong race will be a real test of mental strength for the Beaver Creek downhill winner, Justin Murisier (SUI), as he should prove that his victory was no coincidence. Cyprien Sarrazin (FRA) did not have the best training run. However, the most experienced athletes rarely show their cards on the race day. Then there are the Austrians. Vincent Kriechmayr admitted after the training that he had work to do in the Ciaslat section. Lukas Feuerstein, who gained third place in super-G in Beaver Creek, also has a point to prove.
Let us not forget the Italians, who always strive to please the home crowd. The veteran Christof Innerhofer finished fourth in the training. He might be among the most experienced racers on the course, but Innerhofer always saves his best for his home slope. Dominik Paris was downright disappointed and hyper-critical with his training run, admitting that he did not have a good feeling and had work to do. Paris loves Bormio the most, but he still wants to please all fans of the Dolomites and will do his best on Saslong as well.
Technical Races on Gran Risa
Gran Risa in Alta Badia is notoriously steep, making soft-hearted skiers faint when looking down. This year, both giant slalom and slalom will take place here. Marco Odermatt is a favorite again for the giant slalom, as he found his lost form last week in Val d’Isere. We can count on Henrik Kristoffersen (NOR) to build on his steadily rising form and be successful. The surprising podium finishers from Val d’Isere, Patrik Feuerstein, and Stefan Brennsteiner (AUT) will be under pressure to prove it was no coincidence. And let us not forget Atle Lie McGrath (NOR), Lucas Pinheiro Braathen (BRA), and Loic Meillard (SUI), who all count amongst the pre-race favorites for both giant slalom and slalom events. Yet, Braathen did not show his best form last weekend; he only nailed the last of the four runs that took place. Braathen still starts with higher bib numbers, thus racing in worse conditions than his competitors, which might make him more tired than the rest.
For slalom, there is Manuel Feller (AUT), who seems to have overcome the demons that played with him in the last races and finally finished on decent rank without a DNF. Steven Amiez (FRA) succumbed to the pressure after winning the first slalom run last week, but he might make it to the top this time. It is unclear whether Clement Noel will start on Tuesday, as his injury (a twisted ankle) was not that severe. There is a long time until Tuesday, so we must wait for the updates from the French team.
All in all, skiing fans can look forward to six races starting from Friday, making it an early Christmas present.
