Kriechmayr races past the field in downhill at Bormio

All the focus has been on the two big names in men’s skiing thus far on the Audi FIS World Cup tour. Vincent Kriechmayr (AUT) had something to say about that.

The Austrian claimed his second victory of the season with a stunning performance in the downhill at Bormio. Kriechmayr posted a blistering time of 1:54.68 to pace the field.

He has won two of the five downhill races so far this season.

“It is fantastic to have the toughest race behind me, I made a good run. I tried to keep pushing from the start to the end and it worked really well,” said Kriechmayr.

The victory gives Kriechmayr 29 career World Cup podiums. 12 of those 29 have come in the downhill discipline for the speed specialist.

“There are so many good athletes at the start, and it is not easy to beat them. I tried to keep pushing every meter and every turn so it is nice to win this race,” said Kriechmayr.

The 31-year-old veteran figures to pressure the favourites for the downhill title if he can continue his recent run of form.

Behind Kriechmayr was another surprising name in James Crawford (CAN). The Canadian came across 0.40 seconds off the winning pace to claim second.

Crawford continues to show huge strides this season, improving upon his third-place finish in the downhill at Beaver Creek earlier this season.

“I have been putting down runs all year that I feel are at the highest quality I can muster. I feel like the consistency is coming and with that the results. I am really happy I was able to show what I am capable of on such a tough day,” said Crawford.

It is just the third career podium for the 25-year-old Crawford.

“I prefer slopes like this than the easier snow. Here it is a lot about grit and willingness to push yourself. For me, I have never had an issue with stuff like this so when I get on snow like this, it feels a bit more natural,” said Crawford.

The heavy favourite and downhill superstar Aleksander Aamodt Kilde (NOR) put together a scrappy run on the difficult course to finish third to round out the podium.

The Viking had won three of the previous four downhill races this season but could not put together a clean run to continue his winning streak.

“I charged and did my game plan. I maybe could have been a bit faster at the very top but the middle part was good. In the bottom I was a little tight on the gate, got squeezed a little bit and lost some momentum. That’s it, it happens. It was rough conditions but what Vincent (Kriechmayr) did today was incredible,” said Kilde.

Kilde still leads the downhill standings despite the third-place finish. It is the 35th career podium for the Norwegian, 14 have come in downhill.

Kilde’s main rival and the overall leader Marco Odermatt (SUI) will have to wait a bit longer for his first career downhill victory after finishing fourth at Bormio.

Odermatt could not ski clean enough to crash the podium, finishing 1.46 seconds off the lead.

The Men’s World Cup continues with a super-G race in Bormio on Thursday.