The ski dominator of the year also determines the second giant slalom in Kranjska Gora: Swiss Marco Odermatt wins ahead of Henrik Kristoffersen. The bad news doesn’t stop in the DSV team.
The mouths dropped open to the competing athletes in the finish stadium. That was simply a parade ride that you were able to watch from Henrik Kristoffersen. Starting third from last, the Norwegian conjured up the strongest second run in the snow of Kranjska Gora in Slovenia. Alexis Pinturault and Marco Odermatt would also have a hard time there if their thoughts were on target.
Pinturault then really got behind Kristoffersen, but the dominator was unbeatable. The mouths of the competition opened a little more – what a furious final it was: After his success on Saturday, Marco Odermatt also secured victory in Slovenia on Sunday (03/12/2023). The second giant slalom afternoon in Kranjska Gora also ended in a Swiss frenzy. “I was a little more relaxed today“, he said in the finish stadium.
Three crystal balls for Odermatt
Odermatt had already managed to win the overall World Cup early, but now the Swiss ski dominator has added two more small ones to the big crystal ball. He had also already secured the overall Super-G World Cup, so this also applied to the giant slalom on Sunday. The final events of the ski racers in Soldeu/Andorra are coming up next week (from March 15, 9.55 a.m. in the sports show live stream).
Competitor Kristoffersen at a distance
Odermatt had already triumphed in Kranjska Gora on Saturday (03/11/2023), the next day he put 28 hundredths of a second between himself and the Frenchman Alexis Pinturault in the first round. And he defended this lead to the finish.
Only Kristoffersen was second, 0.32 seconds behind, Pinturault completed the podium (+0.70 seconds). Even this third place would have been enough for Odermatt to secure overall success in the discipline if he had won Kristoffersen.
Swiss coach is the way to the crystal ball
There was another good omen for Odermatt: the Swiss coach set the second half in Slovenia, paving the way to the crystal ball. No German skier from the ranks of the German Ski Association was able to experience the run. Anton Grammel missed the top 30 in the first round, Fabian Gratz and Julian Rauchfuss dropped out.
From a German point of view, the bad news for the giant slalom men does not stop: Alexander Schmid is out of training for a long time after a cruciate ligament rupture, now Stefan Luitz also reported after a fall on Saturday: His knee feels “not stable enough to be competitive today” he wrote on Instagram. “I’m happy, hopefully I won’t suffer any serious injuries, but I’ll have this checked out for the final time.“
Season finale without Germany’s top drivers Schmid and Luitz
This is the end of the season for the man from the Allgäu because he was unable to qualify for the season finale in Soldeu. And how things will continue for him after that doesn’t seem to be entirely clear. “It was an extremely difficult season for me… I will now take my time to think about the next steps.“
