Industry News
After the cancellation of the Downhill yesterday, today’s Super-G event more than made up in terms of excitement and action. The Super-G World Cup finals in Sun Valley, Idaho, on Sunday, March 23, saw Lara Gut-Behrami claim the victory—and Super-G season title—while Team USA’s Lindsey Vonn claimed her first podium in 2,565 days. Rounding out the podium was Italy’s Federica Brignone, who until today had been leading the Super-G season standings.Italy’s Roberta Melesi kicked off the race in bib 1, setting the pace at 1:15.08 minutes. Her teammate Roberta Pirovano in bib 2, managed to attack the for European ski racers unfamiliar course with more aggression and took the lead by 0.55 seconds. Michelle Gisin, by contrast, struggled with the course and finished more than a second behind the Italian. Germany’s Emma Aicher in bib 4 seized the opportunity to snatch the lead with a strong start. She managed to continue the momentum all the way to the bottom and skied across the finish 0.17 seconds ahead of Pirovano.
The following two subsequent skiers, Kira Weidle-Winkelmann and Elena Curtoni, could not endanger her lead. However, Austria’s Conny Hütter in bib 7 confidently smashed the Sun Valley course and snatched the lead from Aicher by 0.35 seconds. Her lead only held for the next two subsequent skiers but then it was time for last year’s defending Super-G season title winner Lara Gut-Behrami. The Swiss ski racer was just five points behind Federica Brignone so went into the race with full aggression, knowing the title was on the line. She put down a smooth run and remained in a low crouch with excellent technique and put herself in the lead from the get go. She extended the lead on the mid-section and pushed the limit further, crossing the finish line 1.66 seconds ahead of “Full-Gas-Conny.” It was a time that proved unbeatable for the remainder of the day.
Team USA’s Lauren Macuga was up next in bib 11 and the crowd was cheering for the Bronze World Champion from Saalbach. However, a series of mistakes caused Macuga to skid too low, resulting in the American skier missing the subsequent gate and ending her bid for a final World Cup podium of the season. Kajsa Lie-Vickhof in bib 12 could not endanger the ranking, finishing more than two seconds behind Gut-Behrami, however France’s Romane Miradoli managed to squeeze into the large gap between Gut-Behrami and Hütter, however, a considerable gap of 1.59 seconds behind the Swiss.
All eyes were on Federica Brignone, who was leading the World Cup after three Super-G victories so far this season. Brignone went into the lead in the top section but chose a higher line than Gut-Behrami, which cost her some time. The Italian ski racer attacked the course but fell further and further behind, finishing 1.33 seconds behind Gut-Behrami. It meant the Super-G globe went to Gut-Behrami and Brignone humbly took a bow in the finish area to her co-competitor. Her teammate Sofia Goggia could not excel on the course and after a big mistake on the top-section, the Italian was out of contention for a top finish.
With the top-ranked 15 skiers having finished the race, the podium seemed untouchable, but then all eyes were trained on Lindsey Vonn in bib 17, who to this day remains to be the most successful Super-G skier of all time with 28 victories. In front of a cheering homecrowd, the American put down a smooth run and squeezed into the gap between Brignone and Gut-Behrami, 1.29 seconds behind the leader. The crowd went crazy and Vonn fist bumped as she claimed her first podium since her comeback. Only Italy’s Marta Bassino came close to threatening the status quo but ultimately finished in fourth place, 0.12 seconds behidn her teammate Brignone.
“It’s been a really fun journey, it’s been a really hard journey,” an emotional Vonn said in a post-race interview. “This podium is so meaningful,” she added. Today’s second place at Sun Valley marks her first World Cup podium since her comeback in October last year. “I always knew why I was here. I love skiing, I love going fast, and I just couldn’t put all the pieces together—and today, I finally did.”
With today’s victory, Lara Gut-Behrami clinches the Super-G season title, her sixth in total. With six Super-G crystal globes to her name, Gut-Behrami holds the record for most Super-G season titles, breaking last year’s tie with Lindsy Vonn, Katja Seizinger, Aksel Lund Svindal, and Hermann Maier.
The World Cup Finals in Sun Valley continue on Monday with the women’s Giant Slalom.
