Bormolini and Hofmeister are the best at Bad Gastein

Jan 16, 2024·Snowboard Alpine

The Bad Gastein slalom slopes are steep, speedy, and stacked with drama. This year’s edition brought more of the same. The best from the FIS Alpine Snowboard World Cup dueled under the lights at the Austrian mountain on Tuesday and it was the usual best who came out on top.

Ramona Theresia Hofmeister (GER) reestablished her winning ways. She dominated the field to capture her fourth victory in five races this season. It was redemption after the German suffered a shocking ninth place finish on Saturday in Scuol.

Hofmeister took the spot in qualifying and never looked back. In the big final, she overcame the home crowd cheers to beat Sabine Schoeffmann (AUT) by 0.18 seconds. The overall leader was ecstatic after crossing the finish line in the big final.

“It is an incredible season so far with the fourth victory. This one is for my mom thank you so much for everything. Bad Gastein is one of my favorite races, the courses were great, I love it here. Today was amazing,” Hofmeister said.

It is the 19th World Cup career podium for Hofmeister and the third at Bad Gastein. She bumps up her outstanding World Cup podium to 38.

Ramona Theresia Hofmeister (GER) dominates the field once again. © Miha Matavz/FIS

She edged out the home crowd favorite Schoeffmann in the final. The Austrian settled for second after a strong day. It is the third podium for her this season and her 22nd career World Cup podium.

Schoeffman put together a late charge and great comeback to edge past Julie Zogg (SUI) in the semifinals. Zogg then stumbled in the small final and finished fourth.

Jasmin Coratti (ITA) continued her run of form by rounding out the podium. It is just the second career World Cup podium for the 22-year-old. She finished second on Saturday in Scuol.

Coratti had quite the day as she took out her teammate Lucia Dalmasso (ITA) in the first round with a close finish and then took out previous world champion Tsubaki Miki (JPN) in the quarterfinals. Her defeat of Dalmasso was a reversal of the finish on Saturday when Dalmasso came out on top.

Elsewhere in the women’s field, Claudia Riegler was a pre-race favorite but could not add to her illustrious achievements as she fell in the first round. Last year’s winner at Bad Gastein, Daniela Ulbing (AUT) did not start due to injury.

Women’s Parallel Slalom Standings after Race 2 of 6

Ramona Theresia Hofmeister (GER) – 200 points
Sabine Schoeffmann (AUT) – 140 points
Lucia Dalmasso (ITA) – 109 points
Julie Zogg (SUI) – 100 points
Jasmin Coratti (ITA) – 89 points

Women’s Overall Standings

Ramona Theresia Hofmeister (GER) – 429 points
Lucia Dalmasso (ITA) – 334 points
Sabine Schoeffmann (AUT) – 250 points
Jasmin Coratti (ITA) – 223 points
Tsubaki Miki (JPN) – 216 points

Team Germany celebrates another Hofmeister win. © Miha Matavz/FIS

The cream rose to the crop on the men’s side as well. Maurizio Bormolini (ITA) repeated his victory at Bad Gastein last season. He beat out Arvid Auner (AUT) and the Austrian home crowd to top the podium. Bormolini loves the Austrian resort so much he wants naming rights.

“I want to ask the boss of Bad Gastein if they can put my name on the slope here. It is always a big emotion for me to ride here. It is special for me. I have the best results for me in my career here and I like it very much,” Bormolini said. “This is my back-to-back. I have no words for it.”

It is the fifth podium of Bormolini’s career at Bad Gastein and the eighth World Cup podium of his career. Bormolini overcame a strong showing from the Austrian men in their home country. They filled three of the four men’s semifinals spots and had no problem adjusting to the less straight course the officials designed this season.

Auner settled for second. It was not all bad for the Austrian as he moved up to first place in the parallel slalom standings. Fabian Obmann (AUT) beat Benjamin Karl (AUT) in the small final to take the final podium spot. Karl maintains his overall leader position despite the DNF in the small final.

There were a lot of lost edges and falls in the men’s rounds. The steep slopes and speed proved tricky for almost everyone except the hometown Austrian team. However, Andres Prommegger (AUT) struggled in qualification and did not make the knockout rounds.

The racers return to the mountain for the mixed team parallel slalom race. One male and one female racer will represent each country as they go head-to-head for the first team title of the season.

The hectic schedule for the FIS Alpine Snowboard World Cup continues with a parallel slalom double in Pamporovo later this week on January 20 and 21.

Men’s Parallel Slalom Standings after Race 2 of 6: