Val di Fassa, Italy – Laura Pirovano continued her remarkable run of form, securing her second consecutive World Cup downhill victory in Val di Fassa on Thursday, winning by the incredibly narrow margin of one-hundredth of a second. More importantly, the Italian now leads the downhill World Cup standings with just one race remaining, setting up a thrilling finale in Lillehammer.
The atmosphere at the finish area of the “La VolatA” piste was electric as the home crowd celebrated Pirovano’s stunning achievement. The Trentino native, who had previously struggled to reach the podium, has now topped it twice in as many days, captivating Italian ski fans.
Pirovano’s success represents a significant boost for Italian alpine skiing. “We’ve found a new weapon to attack with, a really strong one,” said one enthusiastic observer. Pirovano herself remained characteristically humble, stating, “It feels surreal, I still can’t quite believe it. But I’m incredibly happy.” She added, “I always felt like something was missing, that final little push, but I knew I was there and capable of competing. My consistency has been paying off. Am I joining the club of great Italians like Brignone, Goggia, and Bassino? I’ve only played a small part compared to these champions who are a reference point – in the future, I’d like to even approach their results.”
Thursday’s race saw a reshuffling of the leaderboard compared to the previous day’s event. Germany’s Emma Aicher, who finished second on Wednesday, slipped to twelfth place. Breezy Johnson, the Olympic and World Champion, was unable to secure a victory, finishing fourth after claiming a podium spot the day before. Switzerland’s Corinne Suter demonstrated her return to form with a third-place finish, although Sofia Goggia improved her performance but remained outside the top ten, finishing eleventh, just ahead of Nicol Delago in ninth.
Pirovano faced a challenging benchmark set by Cornelia Huetter of Austria, who posted a time of 1’20”92 with the 11th start number. Pirovano, starting 15th, matched Huetter’s pace, but was trailing slightly throughout the course: 12 hundredths of a second behind after the first two checkpoints, 5 hundredths at the third, and 11 hundredths at the fourth. It appeared a victory was out of reach, but Pirovano dug deep, finishing with a time of 1’20”91 – a margin of just one-hundredth of a second. Suter then challenged the time, finishing only 5 hundredths behind Pirovano.
“What shocked me was winning like that, with two girls replicating my run but being beaten,” Pirovano explained. “I thought, ‘no way, What we have is a joke.’ But it was real. In two days, I’ve made up for all the times hundredths of a second cost me. I was also surprised by today’s run. I thought I would win by less than yesterday. The first victory gave me so many emotions, but it also took a lot of energy. Midway through the course, I felt exhausted and tried to let the skis flow to see what would happen.”
This victory marks the 146th first-place finish in World Cup history for Italian skiers, and the fifth of the season for Pirovano – bringing her total number of podiums to nine. Pirovano now equals Sofia Goggia’s two wins this season. The situation has dramatically shifted, with Pirovano now leading the downhill standings with 436 points, ahead of Lindsey Vonn (400 points, but no longer competing due to injury) and Emma Aicher (415 points).
The battle for the downhill title is far from over, and the mental aspect will be crucial in Lillehammer. Aicher, at 22, is a rising star, while Pirovano, at 29, brings more experience to the table. Pirovano acknowledged the pressure, stating, “They told me I’m in the lead, but I don’t want to suppose about it. It’s a situation I need to manage along with the emotions I’m feeling.” Having conquered those elusive hundredths of a second, Pirovano must now master the numbers of the overall standings.
The World Cup downhill finals in Lillehammer promise to be a thrilling conclusion to the season, with Laura Pirovano poised to make history.
