Giovanni Franzoni celebrates his first World Cup victory in the super-G in Wengen. Even Marco Odermatt realizes early on: this run is unbeatable.
16.01.2026, 16:09
16.01.2026, 16:23
SDA
When Giovanni Franzoni crosses the finish line, most of the fans in the audience don't know what the time of the skier with bib number 1 actually means. However, Marco Odermatt, who follows his rival's run at the start, already suspects that it will hardly be faster. When he himself crossed the finish line in fourth place, he went to Franzoni in the leader's box and told him: "I already knew at the top that you were going to win."
Odermatt has not yet had much to do with the 24-year-old Italian. The first talks took place in Val Gardena/Gröden in mid-December after Franzoni finished third, directly behind Odermatt, on the World Cup podium for the first time. "He's a cool guy and already surprised us in training," Odermatt told reporters in the finish area in Wengen. "At first I thought he had missed a gate or two. Then he confirmed his form in the second training session and again today."
Emotional Franzoni
Franzoni himself had few words for his performance. Over the last few days, he had repeatedly read the slogan "Home of Legends", which Wengen has been using to market the Lauberhorn race for a few years now. "So many legends have skied down here - and now I'm winning. That's crazy. But I'm just a normal guy," Franzoni told SRF. "It's a dream."
The skiers know that low numbers are usually an advantage on the Lauberhorn. Accordingly, Franzoni felt a certain amount of pressure to confirm his convincing training performance after his luck with the starting number draw. "I actually prefer it if I can still watch one or two riders at the top," said Franzoni. But that wasn't necessary this time.
In any case, the Italian is currently experiencing very emotional days. At his podium premiere in Val Gardena/Gröden, he paid tribute to his teammate Matteo Franzoso, who passed away in the summer, and let his tears flow freely: "If he were here, I would tell him that he was a fantastic person. That he was like a brother to me. I will ski for him my whole life."
Confirmation in the downhill?
The potential of the athlete, who grew up on the south-western shore of Lake Garda, had been known for some time. He won gold in the super-G at the Junior World Championships in 2021 and gold in the downhill and combined a year later. He also scored his first World Cup points in the giant slalom in Adelboden in 2022 and finished 30th in the super-G in Wengen a few days later.
A year later, however, he had a crash on the Lauberhorn of all places, which ended his season early. "Despite this experience, I really like this slope," said Franzoni. A love that is likely to grow with his first World Cup victory.
On Saturday, he has the chance to prove his top form in the legendary downhill and set a best result in this discipline (8th place so far). After his strong performances in the past few days, it would come as no surprise if he were to compete for the podium again. Odermatt, who is aiming for his fourth downhill victory in a row at the Lauberhorn, says of the Italian triumphant: "He has definitely arrived."
