Stephanie Venier pulls off a coup in the World Championship Super-G. The Austrian was crowned World Champion in Saalbach ahead of Federica Brignone and the duo Kajsa Lie/Lauren Macuga, who finished in the same time.
Venier started the race with bib number 7 and took ten hundredths off Federica Brignone, who started directly in front of her. The Austrian made the difference in the second sector, where she took just under a quarter of a second from the favorite from Italy.
This is Venier's first medal at a major event, possibly a gold one. The 31-year-old has stood on the podium six times in the super-G in the World Cup, the only time she finished on top in Crans-Montana just under a year ago - even then ahead of Brignone.
Just like two years ago, Kajsa Lie is likely to finish third on the podium - and, as in Méribel, not alone. The Norwegian is tied for 3rd place with American Lauren Macuga. She already shared this with Cornelia Hütter in 2023.
Swiss women beaten - Vonn eliminated
Surprisingly, the Swiss women had nothing to do with the outcome of the race. Although Lara Gut-Behrami came through without any obvious mistakes, she continuously lost time and finished 0.7 seconds behind in 8th place. The Olympic champion from Beijing and World Champion from Cortina d'Ampezzo missed out on the medals by 46 hundredths.
Malorie Blanc put in a strong performance in her first World Championship race, finishing in 12th place just 1.19 seconds behind the leader. Corinne Suter finished two places behind the Valais skier. The two-time World Championship medal winner in the super-G lost a lot of time, especially in the bottom section of the course. Michelle Gisin did not make it past 17th place.
Returning skier Vonn retired early in her first World Championship race in six years. The former speed queen skied straight into a gate in a right-hand bend at high speed and then held her right arm in pain.
The live ticker
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The preview of the race
The biggest Swiss trump cards
1st in the discipline ranking
Lara Gut Behrami
The skier from Ticino is the big favorite for a medal in the World Championship Super-G. The leader in the discipline World Cup has finished on the podium four times in five super-Gs this season. However, she only took one victory and three second places.
8th in the discipline rankings
Corinne Suter
In Cortina d'Ampezzo in January, Suter took a podium place in the super-G with 3rd place. Otherwise she has always skied solidly, but never right at the front. Sutter is therefore not one of the big favorites in the super-G.
The international favorites
The two Italians Federica Brignone and Sofia Goggia are hard to beat on a good day. The Austrian Cornelia Hütter has also already won a super-G this season, as has the American Lauren Macuga. Norwegian Kajsa Vickhoff Lie is also a podium racer and always among the front runners.
The results of the World Cup final in Saalbach 2024
🥇 Ester Ledecka (CZE)
🥈 Federica Brignone (ITA)
🥉 Kajsa Vickhoff Lie (NOR)
7. Lara Gut-Behrami (SUI)
12. Michelle Gisin (SUI)
19. Jasmina Suter (SUI)
