The Norwegian won the race in extremis ahead of the Austrian Daniel Hemetsberger by six hundredths and Odermatt by ten hundredths.
The Norwegian Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, holder of the small globe of the specialty, won the World Cup downhill in Lake Louise (Canada) on Saturday and dominated the Swiss prodigy Marco Odermatt.
After a very tight race, Kilde beat the Austrian Daniel Hemetsberger by six hundredths and Odermatt by ten hundredths.
An exciting duel between Odermatt and Kilde this season
In speed, the Odermatt / Kilde duel promises to be explosive this season, and it is the Norwegian, winner of the big crystal globe in 2020, who won the first round.
After the cancellations of the Zermatt/Cervinia descents in November and then the postponement of the descent to Lake Louise for a day because of the fog, the two champions were finally able to explain themselves in a hurry, while Odermatt had won the giant of opening in Sölden (Austria) at the end of October.
Winner of the big crystal globe in the spring and undisputed world No. 1 at the moment thanks to his versatility (downhill, super-G, giant), Odermatt, also Olympic champion in the giant, managed a superb descent on Saturday. Starting after Kilde, he was in the lead almost throughout the race before falling in the last sector, pure gliding, more favorable to big guys.
The 25-year-old skiing genius will therefore have to wait a little longer before signing a first victory in the downhill, where he nevertheless managed a fifth podium.
Once again, Kilde had the last word, winning a 14th victory on the circuit, the seventh in the downhill, while he has been in full confidence for three years.
Hemetsberger achieved the second podium of his career, at 31, after his surprising third place in Kitzbühel in January.
Odermatt remains at the top of the general classification after two races. He has another appointment with Kilde on Sunday for a super-G.
