First decision of the weekend?: This is how it stands in the battle for the crystal balls

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The ski winter is entering its decisive phase. No balls have been awarded yet. When will the first final decision be made? This is the starting position in the battle for individual ratings for the final third of the season.

For women it couldn’t be more exciting. Lara Gut-Behrami (32) and Mikaela Shiffrin (28) duel for the big ball. Thanks to her victory in the giant slalom in Soldeu (And), the Swiss is five points ahead of Shiffrin with thirteen races (nine speed, four technique) to go. The American has not competed in a single race since her crash in Cortina d’Ampezzo (It) and she will also skip the Speed ​​Triple in Crans-Montana USA. Because it is unclear when she will return, the benefits currently lie with Gut-Behrami.

The decision was actually made for men. With 13 more races (four acceleration, nine technical), Marco Odermatt (26) has 822 points more than his first pursuer Cyprien Sarrazin (29) – the speed specialist cannot overtake the two remaining descents and also Super-G if he has already done so this season. participated in the giant slalom (two races, zero points).

Manuel Feller (31) in third place is 837 points behind. There are still eight races left for the technology specialist and a maximum of 800 points – he too can no longer pose a threat to Odermatt. Everyone else is behind by 992 points or more. The overall World Cup hat-trick for Odermatt becomes mathematically final once the number of excellent races is 100 points smaller than his lead over the second-placed team.

Rest in the women’s Super-G. They completed five of the ten scheduled races. Gut-Behrami is in pole position. However, she is only ten points ahead of Cornelia Hütter (31). With so many races to go, a lot is still possible. Even Michelle Gisin (30), who is 203 points behind in tenth place, can theoretically still secure the ball.

Odermatt is about to defend his men’s title. With two races to go, his lead over Vincent Kriechmayr (32) is 121 points. This means: if Odermatt is in front of the Austrian in Kvitfjell (No) on Sunday, he will get the ball. If Kriechmayr wins, Odermatt would need to finish second to qualify them for the World Cup final.

Sofia Goggia (31) could have been the best downhill skier for the fourth time in a row. But then the Italian fell during training and broke her leg. Her season is over prematurely and the four remaining descents will take place without her. She is currently still in the lead in the standings – ​​89 points ahead of Stephanie Venier (30). She could be the first Austrian woman to win this ball since Nicole Schmidhofer (34) in 2019. Gut-Behrami is 52 points behind her. It remains to be seen who will ultimately lead the way. The two descents in Crans-Montana could result in a preliminary decision.

Only two descents remain for the men. Odermatt has a six-point lead over Sarrazin and can theoretically decide the next race. But only if he scores significantly more points than the Frenchman and thus extends his lead to over 100 points.

Just like last season, Gut-Behrami reaches for the giant slalom ball. For the last two races she is 135 points ahead of her only remaining competitor Federica Brignone (33). If she finishes ahead of the Italian in the next giant slalom, the ball can no longer be taken away from her.

Odermatt is untouchable in the giant slalom with nine victories in a row. His lead over second-placed Filip Zubcic (31) is 286 points. It is difficult to imagine that, given his form, he will relinquish this in the last five races. Rather, it suggests he will secure the ball early and for the third time in a row. This is the case as soon as the number of outstanding giant slaloms is 100 points smaller than Odermatt’s lead.

Petra Vlhova (28) is in second place among women. After her cruciate ligament tear, she will no longer replenish her points account. Shiffrin is in charge. Only Lena Dürr (32) can pose a threat to her in the remaining two races. However, the German would have to catch up with 188 points – this is only possible with two wins and if Shiffrin reaches a maximum of eleven points. The ball will be awarded virtually, even though it is not yet clear whether the American will even participate in the two remaining slaloms.

Manuel Feller (31) has won three slaloms this season and goes into the final sprint as the leader of the discipline classification. His lead over Linus Strasser (31) is 164 points, third placed Daniel Yule (30) is 205 points behind. Because there are still four races to go, the Swiss still has a theoretical chance to get the ball. A decision will not be made until the next race at the earliest.

Source : Blick

Emma

I’m Emma Jack, a news website author at 24 News Reporters. I have been in the industry for over five years and it has been an incredible journey so far. I specialize in sports reporting and am highly knowledgeable about the latest trends and developments in this field.