Great achievement by the Italian Sofia Goggia who returned to the World Cup in her own way. Upon his return after the dramatic accident on February 5th with a fracture of the tibia and malleolus, the girl from Bergamo in fact achieved an excellent second place in 1.32.54 in the difficult Coppa downhill at Beaver Creek, the first of the season. For her it is the 55th podium of her career. The Austrian Cornelia Huetter, known as Conny, 32 years old, winner of the Downhill Cup last year, won in 1.32.38. Third – with perfect weather and snow conditions – the Swiss Lara Gut-Behrami in 1.32.72, holder of the World Cup and considered, in general and not only today, Sofia’s most formidable rival who today, as soon as she crossed the finish line , he rejoiced knowing that he had done a great race and, despite a flaw, he passed as best he could. Then, seeing the fearsome Lara Gut-Behrami finish behind her, for a moment Goggia certainly imagined an incredible victory. But the Austrian killjoy Huetter arrived and the Italian achieved an excellent second place. But, accustomed to giving and having the best, at the end of the race Sofia said that «it was a good race, not an excellent one. I managed to ski on my own feet on the higher and more technical part where I had struggled in the tests: I was very careful. But it’s as if I skied the entire race at 80% of my potential. However, it is an excellent result for which I would have signed on the eve of it.” For Italy in Beaver there was a great performance from the Italian team which fielded ten jet girls out of the 45 starters in this difficult race on the ‘Bird’s of Prey’ track usually reserved for boys: Marta Bassino good 7th in 1 ,33.02, followed by Federica Brignone 9/a in 1.33.25 and struggling with an abscess in a tooth treated with antibiotics. Laura Pirovano from Trentino achieved a good 11th time in 1.33.27. Elena Curtoni, returning after a bad fall a year ago in St. Moritz with a sacrum fracture, finished in 1.34.38. Bad mistake instead for Nicol Delago from Gardena – also returning – who finished further back in 1.35.15 while her sister Nadia was a little faster in 1.34.68. In Val d’Isere, however, the Swiss Marco Odermatt returned to success in the men’s giant slalom in 2.11.66. For him it was the 39th career victory and the fourth in a row on these French snows. All this after having sensationally failed in the first two races of the season. With him on the podium – in a very difficult race all on the steep wall of the ‘Face de Bellevardè, complicated by an almost continuous snowfall with visibility problems and a surface that was at times hard and at times softer and more fragile – the Austrians Patrick Feuerstein in 2.11 .74 and Stefan Brennsteiner in 2.11.78. For Italy the best in a race that was certainly not exciting for many Italians, with the young Alex Vinatzer already out in the first heat, was once again the Trentino veteran Luca De Aliprandini who recovered 11 positions in the decisive descent, finishing an excellent 6th /o on 2.12.05, best seasonal result in a continuous crescendo of performance. The most capable, determined and constant Italian is always aiming to return to the podium in eight days in the giant slalom on the Gran Risa week in Alta Badia. Then in the standings there are only Giovanni Borsotti 13th in 2.12.65 and Hannes Zingerle 247th in 2.13.42. Tomorrow in Val d’Isere it will be the turn of the special slalom, while the Super G will be staged in Beaver Creek and you can be sure that the blue squadron of jet girls will put on a show, with Sofia Goggia who has within her, for this Super G, the ‘fire lit by those 16 cents that separated her from the victory in the downhill. Meanwhile, the US champion Mikaela Shiffrin was unexpectedly subjected – as she announced via social media – to a new surgery to improve the drainage of the deep abdominal wound sustained in the Killington fall. The timing of his return to the cup thus remains uncertain.
John
John, founder of Odnako, combined his journalism degree with technical expertise to revolutionize global news consumption. Before Odnako's 2011 launch, he gained diverse experience across the media and tech fields, setting a solid foundation for his mission to provide comprehensive, unbiased news. His vision and leadership have since established Odnako as a trusted, innovative news platform worldwide.