Odermatt wins World Cup giant slalom at Adelboden for record fifth straight year
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ADELBODEN, Switzerland (AP) — Swiss ski star Marco Odermatt is often unbeatable in the World Cup and especially at his home giant slalom classic that he won for a record fifth straight year Saturday.
Olympic giant slalom champion Odermatt raced through steady falling snow and worsening visibility to protect his first-run lead and win by 0.49 seconds from Lucas Pinheiro Braathen of Brazil. Leo Anguenot of France was third, 0.68 back.
Pinheiro Braathen led the applause in the finish area after watching Odermatt ski at his limit to exactly match the Brazilian’s time in the tough second run.
“He is really the king of this hill,” Pinheiro Braathen said of Odermatt to Swiss broadcaster RTS. “It is an honor to be able to stand as the last man up at the start gate with him and be able to fight him on arguably the coolest race that you guys have to offer.”
Odermatt has won each Adelboden giant slalom since 2022 to overtake the four-win streak of Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark from 1979 through 1982.
“Adelboden was my first love and it will always be my big love. I was here as a small kid,” Odermatt said.
Home wins once were rare and are wildly appreciated by a noisy crowd of about 25,000 fans on a signature day in Switzerland’s sports calendar.
“They really made me push harder,” Odermatt said of the home support. “This energy, this extra pressure and motivation helps.”
Racing began Saturday morning after a minute’s silence observed for the victims of the fatal fire in a bar in nearby Crans-Montana, which hosts World Cup races in three weeks’ time.
In another stellar World Cup season for Odermatt, the four-time defending overall champion has almost twice as many race points as his nearest challenger, Pinheiro Braathen.
Odermatt’s sixth race win this season was the 51st of his career, fourth on the all-time list, and 29th in giant slalom.
Pinheiro Braathen’s pride
Back when he was racing for his father’s nation Norway, Pinheiro Braathen sustained a season-ending knee injury at Adelboden in 2021 crashing over the finish line while setting a fast time in giant slalom.
One year later he stopped his giant slalom run approaching the steep final slope rather than tackle it again.
Pinheiro Braathen said Saturday he later had therapy to help him confront his issues with the storied hill.
“Words cannot describe how proud I am right now.”
Adelboden history
The Adelboden giant slalom has been a fixture on the men’s calendar since the first week of World Cup racing in January 1967. Then, the winner was another iconic ski name, Jean-Claude Killy.
The Chuenisbaergli course has signature rolling terrain over summer cow pastures. Skiers crest a rise before entering the steep final slope that funnels then down into a raucous finish area.
The course stages a slalom Sunday, that Odermatt will skip though Pinheiro Braathen will be a contender to repeat his 2023 win.
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AP skiing: https://apnews.com/hub/alpine-skiing