James Crawford secures his first Alpine Ski World Cup victory by winning the World Cup Downhill at the Streif in Kitzbuehel. It's the fifth time a Canadian has won on the Streif and the first victory for the Canadian team in the Kitzbuehel Downhill since Todd Brooker's victory in 1983.
This marks his fifth podium in the Alpine Ski World Cup and his first since securing second place in the Downhill event in Aspen in 2023.
It's the greatest win for 27-year-old Crawford after winning the Super-G gold at the 47th Alpine World Ski Championships in Courchevel-Méribel.
"It's a dream come true. I've been fast in the downhill before, but I can't believe it at the moment. I can't find the words to describe my emotions. You can't compare it with the gold medal, the World Championship Super-G was my first victory ever and it was a special feeling. But I'm really enjoying it today," Crawford said.
Alexis Monney secured second place, trailing by 0.08 seconds. Cameron Alexander, Crawford's teammate, completed the podium in third place, 0.22 seconds behind the winner. The last time two Canadians stood on the podium was in February 2012 when Jan Hudec won the Chamonix Downhill ahead of Romed Baumann and teammate Erik Guay.
It's Monney's third World Cup podium after winning the Downhill and finished third in the Super-G in Bormio last December.
"I'm very happy. I would have signed up for a podium place in Kitzbühel at the start of the season. The downhill in Kitzbühel has been a dream of mine since I was a child. I always wanted to ski well here. Bormio and Kitzbühel are very similar downhills. It's icy, and there are bumps, which I really like," Monney said.
Cameron Alexander claimed in Kitzbuehel his fifth World Cup podium, the second this season after finishing third in the Downhill in Bormio in December.
"I don’t think you can ever be perfectly comfortable on the Streif, it’s a beast for sure, but I felt like I was able to push and then attack all the way down. I was able to do that today. This place is amazing, my favorite place to race every year," Alexander said.
In the fifth Downhill of the season, for the first time, a Swiss skier did not win. Big favorite, particularly after his victory in yesterday's Super-G, Marco Odermatt ended up in sixth place. He has to wait for his first victory in the Streif Downhill.
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