Olympics
Today saw the men’s Super-G at Bormio, Italy, and the sun was out, the Stelvio was fast, and the race delivered exactly what you’d expect from one of the most demanding tracks in ski racing: nail-biting excitement and thrills until the very end.
Claiming victory for the third time these Olympics was Franjo von Allmen from Switzerland. The 24-year-old Swiss star charged to gold, edging out American Ryan Cochran-Siegle by just 0.13 seconds to claim his third gold medal in three Olympic races—downhill, team combined, and now Super-G. At these Games, von Allmen doesn’t seem to know any color but gold, leaving his teammate and favorite Marco Odermatt with metals of a lesser shine. “I don’t quite know what’s going on myself,” von Allmen said after the race. “I really didn’t think it was enough for the podium when I reached the finish line.”
With his third Olympic gold at Milan0-Cortina, von Allmen becomes just the third man in Olympic history to win three alpine gold medals at a single Games—joining Toni Sailer and Jean-Claude Killy.
Meanwhile, for Team USA, it was a fantastic day as well, with Ryan Cochran-Siegle claiming silver. Starting with bib 3, Cochran-Siegle attacked early on a clean, grippy surface—taking full advantage of the prime conditions and putting him in the lead ahead of France’s Nils Allègre in bib 1. Bormio suits skiers who are willing to commit: long gliding sections, technical rolls, and terrain that punishes hesitation. Cochran-Siegle skied it with precision and heart.
“I was really happy with my ski today,” Cochran-Siegle said. “I felt like I went out there, skied with a lot of heart and just the focus that I’ve been doing consistently from top to bottom. It’s a great place to do it—I feel like I really embraced the slope and the way the snow was and the course set. But the meaning? It hasn’t set in. I did not expect this.” After a disappointing downhill earlier in the week, Cochran-Siegle regrouped. He admitted he “spent a lot of time in bed the last few days,” frustrated and searching for answers. “Yesterday I got a little frustrated, I didn’t feel I was where I wanted to be,” he said. “I just tried to do what I could do to give myself the opportunity today… it just made me think about the skiing itself. And it took the pressure off me as well.”
The reset worked. From the top, Cochran-Siegle was smooth and efficient, carrying speed through the flats and staying composed over the technical features that define the Stelvio. He crossed the line into the lead and sat in the hot seat as heavy hitters dropped one by one. His lead held until von Allmen shot down in bib 7, who edged the American by a mere 0.13 seconds. Nils Allègre, was bumped down by Marco Odermatt, who slid in between CRS and the Frenchman in bib 10. Italian favorite Dominik Paris lost his outside ski early and skied out. Giovanni Franzoni, silver medalist in the downhill, finished sixth, Austria’s Raphael Haaser and Vincent Kriechmayr finished in fifth and seventh, respectively, while Frederik Møller, who had crashed hard in downhill, finished in eighth.
Cochran-Siegle’s silver marks his second Olympic medal in the Super-G, four years after earning silver in the same event. Racing in front of family and friends—including his Olympic champion mother—made the moment even more meaningful. “It’s hard to put into words,” Cochran-Siegle said. “I now understand how much I have grown as a skier in the last four years. I’m just grateful that I could go out and ski like that.”
Behind him, Team USA continued to show depth. Sam Morse finished 23rd and Kyle Negomir 26th, while River Radamus did not finish but is OK. “The track was super fun to ski,” said Morse. “Very happy for Ryan—to back up his silver today is impressive.”
Impressive is certainly the right word for today—between CRS, who has now two Olympic medals to his name, which makes him one of six U.S. alpine skiers, and von Allmen, who has won three golds in three races, Olympic history is being written before our eyes, putting these men into the company of legends. Bode Miller has won six Olympic medals, while Ted Ligety, Phil Mahre, Tommy Moe, and Andrew Weibrechtand have won two Olympic medals.
The speed events at the Olympics are now complete. Up next: giant slalom and slalom, where Odermatt will look for redemption—and where Team USA will try to keep the momentum rolling.
