Skies clear to help Austrians sweep super-G podium in Kvitfjell

There was drama in Kvitfjell on Sunday – with the Norwegian weather playing a central role.

Jasmine Flury (SUI) was the first racer out of the gate, and finished her run mildly dissatisfied after making a mid-course error.

After a delay due to a crash from Alice Robinson (NZL), however, the conditions worsened significantly, and Flury sat in the leader’s chair for an age as racer after racer lost huge chunks of time.

Then came Sofia Goggia (ITA). The Italian dynamo did enough to stay in contention amid the poor visibility at the top, where the likes of Mikaela Shiffrin (USA), Elena Curtoni (ITA) and Lara Gut-Behrami (SUI) had laboured – and then turned on the burners to take the lead.

But just as it looked like Goggia had pulled off a blizzard-battled heist, the swirling snow stopped and the skies cleared.

It became a race of two halves. With the top-ranked athletes hampered by the conditions, the bib numbers in the late 20s were gifted a different course.

It was the Austrians, who have had a disappointing season overall, that cashed in. Franziska Gritsch (AUT) took the lead, Stephanie Venier (AUT) grabbed it from her, before Nina Ortlieb (AUT) finally clocked the best time of all.

Ortlieb is from impeccable ski racing pedigree – her father Patrick was men’s Olympic downhill champion at Albertville 1992 – and she won silver in the downhill at the recent World Championships. This was her second World Cup gold, having bagged a super-G in 2020 at La Thuile.

Ortlieb acknowledged how much conditions had played a part. “I was lucky today, I am sure that it was not fair for everyone,” she said. “It was unbelievable. I knew at the start the conditions were getting better and better.

“After Alice crashed, it got crazy slow on the top because of the heavy snowfall. When I went up on the lift I thought 'wow it is snowing a lot', but then it got less.

“I got an opportunity and I skied well. I am happy that I am here today. I thought, OK, let’s go and try. It was fun and a little crazy to see the green light at the finish. I was a little confused. But I got a good improvement from two days ago when I was skiing without confidence.”

Second-placed Venier was delighted to be part of the first all-Austrian women’s super-G podium since 2004. “The weather was on our side today, but I was feeling really good,” she said.

“I’m just happy for all of us. It was a really long time ago [that three Austrians topped a super-G race]. It feels crazy to share a podium with my teammates. It’s a little bit unbelievable.”

Gritsch concurred. “My racing was really cool,” she said. “I also had a great feeling in the super-G on Friday. I need to say that the weather was also a bit better when I came with the bib, number 26, but I wanted to go fast and it was really nice.

“Today the weather luck was on my side, but I used the chance. Three Austrians on the podium is amazing, really fun.”

Goggia, however, was left cursing meteorology. “I’m sorry because we came down with criminal conditions, and now there is the sun and everything is really fast,” she said after losing her lead. “I’m happy with my performance. The conditions were really tough. But of course, the race changed too much.”

With all the top contenders racing during the snowfall, the result means that the battle to win the World Cup crystal globe in the super-G is still no clearer.

It is the most wide open of any event this season – men’s or women’s – with all six World Cup races so far (and the World Championships super-G) having different winners. Things now go to the wire at the World Cup Finals in Soldeu.