Marco Odermatt continued his remarkable dominance with a commanding victory in the men’s Giant Slalom in Adelboden, Switzerland, on Saturday, December 10, claiming his 51st career World Cup victory and a record-setting fifth consecutive Giant Slalom win on the famed Chuenisbärgli run.
The 28-year-old Swiss star finished ahead of Brazilian skier Lucas Pinheiro Braathen in second, with France’s Léo Anguenot rounding out the podium for his second career World Cup top-three result. The win saw Odermatt break a long-standing Adelboden record previously shared with Ingemar Stenmark, who won four straight Giant Slaloms on the Chuenisbärgli between 1979 and 1982.
Run 1
Giant Slalom races are decided over two runs, with the fastest 30 skiers from run one advancing to a reversed-order second run, where combined times determine the final standings. Braathen opened the race and immediately set the benchmark with a strong 1:14.89, holding the lead as several top contenders—including Thomas Tumler, Loïc Meillard, Henrik Kristoffersen, Stefan Brennsteiner, and Marco Schwarz—failed to match his time under deteriorating conditions marked by snowfall and flat light.
Only Odermatt managed to pip the Brazilian-Norwegian to claim the fastest run 1 of the day, skiing into the lead with bib 7. Skiing with trademark precision and aggression, he took roughly half a second out of Braathen to seize control of the race, delighting a packed Adelboden crowd despite the challenging visibility.
For a while run 1 seemed dominated by the usual names, with familiar Norwegian contenders—Timon Haugan, Henrik Kristoffersen, and Atle Lie McGrath—lurking just behind. But there were several surprises coming from competitors further down the starting order: France’s Léo Anguenot managed to shake up the top five with a standout performance from bib 18, skiing into fourth place and firmly positioning himself for a podium push. Equally surprising was Austrian Joshua Sturm, who charged into fifth place from bib 33, one of the biggest overachievements of the opening run.
Meanwhile, Team USA’s River Radamus narrowly squeaked into the top 30. The Vail native finished run 1 in 30th place, qualifying him as the only American for run 2. Ryder Sarchett narrowly missed out with a 34th-place finish, while Bridger Gile ended the day in 50th and George Steffey in 55th. Isaiah Nelson and Patrick Kenney recorded DNFs.
Run 2
Radamus opened run 2 and what an opening it was. The American laid down a blistering run that none of the following skiers could match, ultimately standing as the fastest run 2 of the day by nearly a full second. His charge saw him climb 23 places to finish seventh overall, continuing an impressive streak of Giant Slalom results and gaining him qualification for the 2026 Olympics. Germany’s Fabian Gratz also impressed in the second run, posting the second-fastest time and making a significant move up the leaderboard.
Radamus held onto the leader’s seat for another 20 skiers before Switzerland’s Loïc Meillard—who had qualified in 10th—finally knocked him out of first by 0.17 seconds. Ninth-last skier Austria’s Raphael Haaser could not quite match that pace, falling not only behind Meillard but also behind Radamus, while Norway’s Kristoffersen managed to beat the Swiss, skiing into the lead by 0.07 seconds. Italy’s Alex Vinatzer unfortunately made a big mistake in the top section, costing him speed and putting him far out of contention. Austria’s Marco Schwarz ended with a DNF after straddling a gate, while his teammate Sturm could not quite find the same pace as in his first run, dropping nearly a second back.
Next up was Anguenot, who skied an incredibly smooth run, weaving effortlessly down the course bar a minor mistake near the bottom. The Frenchman snatched the lead by an incredible 0.75 seconds, though with three skiers still to come, a podium was not yet guaranteed. Third-last skier Timon Haugan pushed hard but came up short, slotting in behind Anguenot.
Then came Braathen, who delivered a powerful, at times acrobatic but always dynamic run, earning the lead by 0.19 seconds ahead of Anguenot.
This left only Odermatt to compete, and the Swiss star showed no signs of nerves. Despite the pressure and worsening conditions, he skied with control and confidence to protect his first-run advantage to the millisecond, securing victory ahead of Braathen and Anguenot. “Winning here is the greatest thing,” Odermatt said afterward.
Odermatt leads the Giant Slalom standings with exactly 400 points after three victories, a third, and a sixth place. In addition, he leads the Downhill and Super-G standings, putting him into the lead in the overall standings by more than 400 points ahead of Braathen.
The World Cup now heads to Wengen, Switzerland, where the iconic Lauberhorn races await.
