Federica Brignone continued her dominance in giant slalom races, securing a commanding victory and taking another significant step toward winning her second overall World Cup title.
Brignone posted the fastest times in both runs of the World Cup giant slalom event on Saturday. Meanwhile, Mikaela Shiffrin, still recovering from a serious crash in November, struggled and failed to finish the first run after skiing wide on a right-hand turn.
Brignone, starting last in the afternoon as the first-run leader, extended her lead to 1.36 seconds over Alice Robinson. Lara Colturi finished third, trailing Brignone by 1.43 seconds.
Despite her substantial lead, Brignone pushed for even more speed and nearly crashed as she approached the finish line, getting airborne with both skis off the snow.
“It was a bit slippery. Then I had that mistake and I said, ‘Oh no, this is over,’” she commented on the close call.
Federica Brignone has won every giant slalom race she has finished this season, including a gold medal at the World Championships last month. However, she did not finish three World Cup races.
Alice Robinson’s consistent performances have allowed her to maintain a 20-point lead over Brignone in the giant slalom standings, with one race remaining on March 25 in Sun Valley, Idaho.
“It’s an incredible battle,” Brignone commented on her competition with Alice Robinson from New Zealand. “She’s been on the podium in every race, and she’s an amazing skier.”
At 34, Brignone is now on track for her second overall World Cup title.
With 100 points from Saturday’s victory, Brignone holds a 322-point lead over defending champion Lara Gut-Behrami, who finished ninth.
Brignone’s 36th career World Cup win also marked her 21st victory since turning 30, setting a record for the women’s World Cup. For comparison, Lindsey Vonn has 15 wins after turning 30, and Gut-Behrami has 12.
Sofia Goggia, with four wins in her 30s, still hasn’t claimed a podium spot in giant slalom for seven years. After starting the second run in second place, Goggia was on pace to post the fastest time but stopped after losing control from taking too much speed through a turn.
Mikaela Shiffrin has started three giant slalom races since suffering a serious puncture wound to her stomach during a crash in Killington, Vermont, over three months ago. Her results in those races have been 25th place, failing to qualify for the second run, and now a “did not finish.”
However, Shiffrin has regained her top form in slalom, the event taking place on Sunday. She secured her record-extending 100th career World Cup victory in slalom two weeks ago.
Both Federica Brignone and Lara Gut-Behrami have opted to skip slalom events.