Paula Moltzan (USA) nearly clinched her first-ever World Cup win on Saturday, holding onto the top spot in the women's giant slalom race at the Spindleruv Mlyn ski resort in Czechia — until the final skier, Sara Hector (SWE), swooped in to take the victory, edging Moltzan by 0.18 seconds for a final time of 2:23.86. 

Hector posted the fastest first run, but was trailing Moltzan at the third time check of the second. She blasted through the last section of the race nearly half a second faster than the American to clinch the win. It was the first win of the season and eighth career Cup podium for the reigning Olympic GS champion.

“It always feels amazing to have a win in the bag, but you always have to keep working,” Hector said afterwards. “There’s so many strong girls as you can see today, there’s a lot of nice turns out there. I’m super happy that I crossed the finish line first.”

Mikaela Shiffrin (USA) had yet to find the podium in giant slalom this season, but cruised to a third place finish (+0.23) at the site of her first ever World Cup appearance in 2011. Saturday's result marked the first giant slalom podium finish in two years for the double Olympic champion, who sustained a traumatic puncture injury after colliding with a gate at an event in Killington, Vermont in November 2024.

Shiffrin put an end to her GS podium drought, moving into fourth in the GS standings and maintaining her lead in the overall. She further extended her all-time record for most World Cup podium finishes with 165.

"It's been two years since I've been on a GS podium and longer than a year since I believed I could," Shiffrin said of the milestone. "It was a spectacular race. Crossing the finish line and seeing Paula and Nina... it's pretty rare that you get to experience that with your teammates."

Nina O'Brien (USA) placed fifth for a career-best result after a DNF in Kronplatz. AJ Hurt (USA) finished eighth, putting four Americans in the top 10. It was an emphatic stamp on the final giant slalom Cup race before the Opening Ceremony of the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.

"I’m so pumped for all of us today," O'Brien said. "A double podium and four in the top eight is just so cool! I’m really happy with a lot of the turns I put down and psyched with a new personal best result. It feels great to get some revenge after my crash on Tuesday. The conditions were fantastic today so I’m really looking forward to tomorrow’s slalom."

Julia Scheib (AUT) retained her red bib but DNF'd after slipping out of a turn. It was her second DNF of an otherwise dominant season where she has collected four victories. Still, Scheib’s lead in the GS standings over Camille Rast (SUI) and Hector has closed to under 100 points. Moltzan, the reigning world bronze medalist in giant slalom, sits in sixth in both the GS and overall standings.

The women return for a slalom race on Sunday.