Giovanni Franzoni (ITA) was the first skier to leave the starting gate and the first to sit in the leader box at the bottom of the piste. There he remained nearly for two hours, the duration of raceday.

Franzoni picked up the first World Cup victory of his career in the super-G in Wengen, Switzerland with a time of 1:45.19. For the 24-year-old, the result came on the heels of two strong downhill training runs, claiming the number one position in both. Clearly, he’d found a groove on the considerably-demanding course, which is especially impressive when considering his history there.

In 2023, almost three years ago exactly, Franzoni crashed as he attempted to curl around the precarious Canadian Corner and slid swiftly into the safety net. The injuries he sustained wound up requiring surgery to his thigh, forcing him to miss the remainder of the season.

“It was a long recovery, especially in the gym, but also mentally,” he reflected after the race. “I grew up a lot though because I try to not focus on the results, just focus on enjoying every day, enjoying the slope, enjoying the speed and the skiing. That helps me a lot to push away the negative thoughts. 

“I struggled a lot after the crash, but I think today was the turn that made the difference.”

As he did following his podium finish in Val Gardena, Italy in December, Franzoni dedicated the performance to his good friend Matteo Franzoso, who died after suffering a major head injury while training in Chile during the preseason. Franzoso just was 25 years old.

Stefan Babinsky (AUT) took second (+0.35), which represented the inaugural podium of his career and 10th top-10 finish.

The Swiss competitors made a statement on their home course, with eight placing within the top 30. Franjo Von Allmen (SUI), last year’s winner in Wengen, claimed third (+0.37), while Marco Odermatt (SUI) had an “off” day — by his superhuman standards, at least — grabbing fourth (+0.53). 

With another strong performance, Odi maintained his lead in the overall Crystal Globe and super-G standings. He’ll be a gold-medal favorite in the discipline at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Same goes for downhill and giant slalom.

The Americans turned in an excellent raceday, their best of the 2025-26 season to date, as four finished in the top 30. Ryan Cochran-Siegle (USA), the super-G silver medalist at the Beijing Games in 2022, secured 6th. 

Sam Morse (USA) was superb, wearing the 47th bib and leap-frogging up to 15th. The result was timely for "Moose" as it served as emphatic, close-to-final statement in a bid to compete in his first Winter Olympics before the qualification period ends.

"This is one of those times when in life you need something, and you dig deep into the well, and sometimes it comes and sometimes it doesn't," Morse said. "I'm super grateful that it came today. To throw it down in front of the Wengen crowd, it was really special.

Kyle Negomir (USA) continued his strong Cup campaign, placing 16th and River Radamus (USA) nabbed 26th. 

Meanwhile, the struggles for two-time Olympians Jared Goldberg (USA) and Bryce Bennett (USA) carried over into Wengen, as they finished 41st and 42nd, respectively. Goldberg, who was 20th in the super-G discipline last season (second best among Americans), sits at 48th this season. He and Bennett both will have the opportunity to race again in the downhill. So too will Cochran-Siegle, Morse and the rest of the American speed team.

Marco Schwarz (AUT), fourth overall in Cup points and now ninth in super-G, won't compete in Wengen this weekend due to illness (flu). 

Two-time Olympic medalist and three-time winner in Wengen, Aleksander Aamodt-Kilde (NOR) opted out of the weekend races, as well. A January 2024 crash at the venue resulted in injuries to his calf and shoulder, as well as further complications that put him on the shelf nearly for two years. He wrote on Instagram that he is not yet ready to return to the course.