Kriechmayr strikes gold in Cortina

Vincent Kriechmayr earned his first career gold medal in a major event after claiming gold in today’s super-G race at the FIS World Ski Championsips in Cortina.

Much like in the women’s race, which also saw Lara Gut-Behrami earn her first career medal, the pressure was high on Kriechmayr, who entered today as the clear favorite with two straight super-G victories prior to Cortina.

Adding to the pressure was the fact that Kriechmayr, wearing bib #5, watched from the start gate as the first three racers struggled with the opening jump, all unable to make the sharp turn before the next gate. Kriechmayr was essentially the first racer of the day to successfully manage the passage, but no one could tell if the time would hold as the later racers gained valuable experience watching others.

In the end, the upper passage, combined with a second tricky section a few hundred meters later, would knock out nearly a third of the top 30 with DNFs.

The challenging course opened the door for a few surprises to get onto the podium. Robed Baumann (GER) came down at a blazing speed with the late bib #20. He was neck-in-neck with Kriechmayr and ultimately fell just short of the fairy tale ending, finishing just 0.07 seconds behind his former teammate. Baumann, has only one previous World Championship medal to his credit, coming in 2013 in the Combination. The last World Cup podium for the veteran came in 2015.

The next surprise came in the form of a man who is no stranger to success, but a rare face in the top three of speed events. Alexis Pinturault (FRA) earned his first career gold medal in a speed discipline with today’s bronze medal finish 0.34 seconds behind Kriechmayr. Pinturault is known as one of the best all around racers currently on tour, but his last podium in the super-G came in 2014 in Beaver Creek.

The men will be back in action tomorrow for their first of two downhill training sessions. The next official race for the men will be the downhill on Sunday.