Olympics
The men’s downhill at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Bormio, Italy, was held this morning, Saturday, February 7. The downhillon the Stelvio course delivered a dramatic opening alpine medal event, with Switzerland’s Franjo von Allmen claiming gold, Italy’s Giovanni Franzoni taking silver, and Dominik Paris earning bronze in front of a home crowd.
Austria’s Hemetsberger, who had crashed just two days ago in training, had the honor of opening not only the men’s downhill but also the first Olympic medal event. The Austrian ski racer stopped the clock at 1:52.58, setting a competitive benchmark for the day. Canada’s James Crawford in bib 2 was 0.42 seconds slower, while Team USA’s Bryce Bennet fell 0.87 behind the top time. The first racer to dislodge Hemetsberger from the top of the leaderboard was Switzerland’s Alexis Monney, who edged ahead by 0.22 seconds.
That run marked the beginning of a dominant Swiss stretch. Marco Odermatt, starting in bib 7, surpassed his teammate by 0.05 seconds, before Franjo von Allmen delivered a fearless and commanding run to take the lead by a remarkable 0.70 seconds, creating a significant gap between first and second place. For a brief moment, the podium positions were occupied entirely by Swiss racers.
The dynamic shifted when the Italian team attacked the Stelvio. Giovanni Franzoni, racing in bib 11, split the Swiss pairing by sliding into the large gap between von Allmen and Odermatt. Moments later, Dominik Paris followed in bib 12, moving into third place and pushing Odermatt off the podium entirely.
The rest of the field could not contest the podium. Team USA’s best skier was Kyle Negomir in bib 27, who skied into 10th place, 1.59 seconds behind von Allmen and 0.20 seconds behind Crawford. Bryce Bennett finished in what was ultimately 13th place, while Ryan Cochran-Siegle in bib 13 finished in 18th, and Sam Morse in bib 29 finished in 19th place.
Today’s downhill podium featured two 24-year-olds at the top, with the experienced 36-year-old Paris completing the medals in third. Franzoni admitted he arrived at the Olympics feeling fatigued after what has been a breakthrough season, but said the support from fans in Bormio and across social media gave him an extra lift heading into the Games. The Italian has enjoyed a rapid rise this winter, claiming his first career World Cup podium in Val Gardena, before backing it up with victories in Kitzbühel and Wengen. “This is my dream podium. I have always looked up to Dom [Paris], and to share a podium with him is a dream come true,” Franzoni said after claiming the Olympic silver medal. With a smile, he added, “Although maybe first place may have been a little bit nicer,” before acknowledging the narrow margin to gold. “0.20 seconds is not much, so I am very proud.”
The men’s races in Bormio continue with a team combined on Monday, February 9, while the women will compete the downhill in Cortina d’Ampezzo tomorrow, Sunday, February 8.
