Marco Odermatt (SUI) carved through misty conditions in Val Gardena to pick up a milestone 50th career World Cup victory (1:24.48). 

“It's a crazy number. I've never dreamt about 50,” he said of the accomplishment. “I hope we can count some more. But I'm not a guy who looks too far ahead. I take things day by day, race by race. Our sport can be brutal as well. So yeah, I just try to enjoy every victory.”

The 28-year-old moved into fourth all time in Cup wins for men, tying Italian great Alberto Tomba. Only Ingemar Stenmark (SWE), Marcel Hirscher (AUT) and Hermann Maier (AUT) have more. The next closest current racer to Odi’s mark is Henrik Kristoffersen (NOR) with 33.

Odermatt came into the race as the defending course champion, having triumphed in Val Gardena almost a year ago exactly. It was his fifth win in eight tries this season and second in the downhill discipline.

With an original start time of 4:45 a.m. ET, the first skier left the Saslong starting gate about an hour and fifteen minutes late due to heavy fog that significantly limited visibility. The thick clouds cleared for short stretches of time throughout the day, offering brief windows for the competition to take place. Mother Nature refused to fully cooperate, though, as the race was interrupted three times, which included a pause for a horrific crash.

Early in his run, Fredrik Moeller (NOR), the day's 45th racer, mistimed a jump, which sprung his legs forward and caused him to land hard on his back. As he did, his skis flew off his boots into the air and he slid about 50 feet downhill. Medical professionals attended to Moeller, ultimately backboarding him off the course.

Given the shoddy weather, constant stopping and starting, hours of standing around and ultimately a scary injury, one can’t help but think officials should have called the race, especially after the 30th competitor crossed the finish line (making the results official). On another day, there’s a solid chance the event would have been cancelled altogether, but since it was a make-up from a postponed Beaver Creek race, FIS was keen to move forward. 

We'll provide updates on Moeller's condition as they are available.

Franjo Von Allmen (SUI) claimed second (+0.15), making it a second consecutive runner-up finish in the downhill at Val Gardena for the 24-year-old. It was the 8th podium for the rising star, who became the youngest men’s downhill world champion nearly in four decades back in February. 

Local hero and downhill dynamo, Dominik Paris (ITA), rounded out the top three (+0.19), securing third. He was one of four Italians to crack the top 10. Paris, the 24-time Cup winner, is poised to participate in his fifth Olympic Games, this time on home snow in Milan Cortina. 

American Kyle Negomir made the biggest leap of any racer, starting with the 52nd bib and placing 11th (+0.91). It was his best World Cup finish and a particularly-remarkable feat given the number of race interruptions and hours of not knowing whether he’d get a chance to compete at all. 

"When you want to be a downhiller, that's something you're gonna have to deal with," the 27-year-old said. "I didn't do my first run today, besides inspection, until probably 2:00 p.m. and so I tried to keep the heart rate low, the intensity low, until it was time to go.

"I've had a lot of slow results, a lot of skiing under what I felt like my potential was. We all saw there was an opportunity today, skiing so late and it starting to get older, so wanted to take advantage of it.”

Negomir’s fellow countrymen didn’t fare as well. Jared Goldberg, who claimed his only career podium in the super-G in Val Gardena last season, finished 35th. Ryan Cochran-Siegle (USA), who took third in last year’s downhill event in Val Gardena (and second in 2021), came in 37th. Bryce Bennett, the winner of two World Cups, both at Val Gardena (in 2021 and 2023), trailed right behind RCS, tying for 39th.

Three other Americans — Wiley Maple, Erik Arvidsson and Sam Morse — landed outside the top 50.

Two-time downhill Crystal Globe winner, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde (NOR), still hasn’t quite shaken off the rust since returning earlier this season (in Beaver Creek) from multiple injuries that put him on the shelf for 684 days. He came in 42nd.

The action in Val Gardena continues with a super-G.