Marco Odermatt wins the Giant Slalom in Bansko to remain undefeated. Alexander Steen Olsen finished in second place +0.91 seconds behind Odermatt. Manuel Feller rounded out the podium 1.08 seconds off the pace. It's the 34th World Cup victory for the Overall leader.
The 26-year-old Swiss has won every Giant Slalom this season: Val d'Isère, Alta Badia (2), Adelboden, Schladming, and now Bansko. Odermatt is the second male skier to win each of the opening six World Cup Giant Slalom events of a season. Only Ingemar Stenmark (all 10 in 1978-1979) has had a longer winning streak from the beginning of a season in Men's World Cup Giant Slalom.
Odermatt finished on the podium in each of his last 23 starts in World Cup Giant Slalom races (including 18 wins), since an 11th place in Lenzerheide on March 20, 2021.
The Swiss superstar has won each of the nine Men's World Cup Giant Slalom events, since Marco Schwarz was victorious in Palisades Tahoe on February 25, 2023. This is the second-longest winning streak in Giant Slalom, after a run of 14 by Ingemar Stenmark from 1978 to 1980. With this winning streak, he is on par with Italian legend Alberto Tomba who celebrated nine Slalom victories in a row between January 1994 and January 1995.
"For sure the confidence is on the highest level and everything is working well after his 20th World Cup GS win. The skis are perfect. I just have fun skiing. Every victory is nice, no matter where you get it. But if you can have one almost anywhere, it's cool. This makes it twice as much fun. What was really cool was that we had two completely different courses. The first run was very turny, you had to drive tactically and couldn't push everywhere. Our trainer then did one with fewer turns so that you could really pull and push", Odermatt said.
For 22-year-old Alexander Steen Olsen, who made two miraculous recoveries in his second run, the second-place today marks his first World Cup Giant Slalom podium finish.
“I’m super happy. I was so nervous between the runs, but I managed to cope with the nerves and put down a good second run. It’s a difficult slope and it was such a relief to see the green light at the finish. They did a good job as conditions held up well in the second run, so it was a really nice feeling to ski the slope. It’s so fun to come to Bansko, since we don’t usually come here", Steen Olsen said.
Manuel Feller, despite being once again unable to complete a Giant Slalom training, finished in third place.
"Two solid runs for me, it was enough for a podium and I’m really happy about that. I lost a bit too much with Odermatt, but I have to be happy with the little training I got. It was already at the limit for me with the two runs, but there are still reserves for tomorrow" Feller said.
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