Industry News
The Big Crystal Globe which is awarded to the skier with the most points across all alpine disciplines went to Swiss skiers in both the men’s and the women’s division. Marco Odermatt claimed his third consecutive Overall Title and at only 26 years is certainly poised to keep hanging on to the position as overall leader for a few more seasons, given his age and his ability to shine across several disciplines. Meanwhile the women’s Overall Title went to his teammate Lara Gut-Behrami, who claimed her second career Big Crystal Globe. She last won the Overall Title eight years ago in 2016.
Odermatt debuted on the World Cup circuit at only 18 years of age in the 2015/16 season, when he qualified as Junior World Champion for the World Cup Finals in St. Moritz in March 2016. He claimed his first World Cup podium three years later at Kranjska Gora, Slovenia, and his first victory in December 2020. He has a total of 37 World Cup victories to his name and has set a new record for most FIS points achieved in a single season. Odermatt competes across three disciplines: Giant Slalom, Super-G, and Downhill.
Likewise, Lara Gut-Behrami competes across the same three disciplines and up until the World Cup Final was leading the rankings in the three disciplines and the overall rankings, until Austria’s Cornelia Hütter clinched the Downhill globe last Saturday, March 24, in Saalbach, Austria. Gut-Behrami finished the season with 1,716 points in first place, 135 points ahead of second ranked Federica Brignone from Italy, and 307 points ahead of Mikaela Shiffrin. The Swiss skier also took home the Giant-Slalom and the Super-G Crystal Globe.
Aside from the glory and trophies, both athletes walk away with the highest earnings for the season, with Odermatt having earned a total of CHF 810,000 (USD 896,188) from his 13 victories and in total 20 podiums. Gut-Behrami earned a total of CHF 574,200 (USD 635,298) from her eight victories and in total 16 podiums. The best American earner in the women’s field was Mikaela Shiffrin in second place with CHF 557,000 (USD 616,268), while the highest earning U.S. male skier was Bryce Bennett with CHF 78,000 (USD 86,300).
At 32-years of age, Gut-Behrami also became the oldest woman to claim the Overall Title in FIS history. The ski racer admitted in an interview with Swiss TV station SRF, that next season might be her last season, “I’m sure I’ll ski another year but it’s rather unlikely that I’ll ski two more seasons.” She explained: “It’s not easy to prepare for the Olympics because the Olympic Games always means stress and pressure in the months before and I don’t want that anymore.” The next Olympic Winter Games will take place in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, in February 2026, meaning the 24/24 FIS World Cup season might be her last one.
Switzerland also claimed the Nations Cup for Alpine skiing for the 23/24 season.
