13:22
Bryce Bennett (USA)
With some solid results this winter, the American has found his way among the best downhill riders. However, Bryce Bennett also controls the pace too much in the middle section and will clearly miss the top ten today due to a large deficit.
13:20
Ryan Cochran-Siegle (USA)
In his comeback season, the American is slowly regaining his old self-evidence and security. Now Ryan Cochran-Siegle is the next driver to be kicked out by the Kernen-S. Due to a low speed, the gap of the 29-year-old adds up to more than two seconds.
13:17
Max Franz (AUT)
The Carinthian set the best time in the second training session and just missed the podium yesterday on the shortened descent. However, Max Franz will not be able to build on this advance performance today, because the Austrian missed a bump in front of the Hundschopf and consequently fell far behind. After finishing ninth, Franz shakes his head.
13:15
Carlo Janka (SUI)
A great Swiss skier resigns: Carlo Janka is ending his career for health reasons and will be at the start of a World Cup race for the last time on the Lauberhorn downhill run. Even a front placement would have been possible for the 35-year-old to say goodbye, but Janka completely lost the line in front of the Hundschopf. In the middle part he even lands in the snow, but gets up again and rightly lets himself be celebrated by the audience at the finish.
13:12
Otmar Striedinger (AUT)
The third runner from the strong Austrian speed team embarks on the four-kilometer challenge. Otmar Striedinger is still fighting for the Olympic ticket and starts briskly. Even the 30-year-old manages the Kernen-S very hesitantly and slows down too much at this point. In the meantime, Striedinger is in eighth position.
13:09
Travis Ganong (USA)
Which athlete can still attack the three places on the podium? Almost all of the top favorites have already arrived at the finish line and the conditions on the piste aren’t necessarily getting any better because of the sun’s rays. Travis Ganong is already 1.50 seconds down on the leader before the Hundschopf and is therefore hopelessly falling behind. At the finish, the American takes over the red lantern.
13:06
Johan Clarey (FRA)
At the age of 41, Johan Clarey is still a regular in the concert of the best downhillers – can he benefit from his vast experience? Limited. In the upper section of the course, the Frenchman even undercuts the best time, but gives up the good starting position on the Minsch Kante and the Kernen-S. Even for a top ten result, it is no longer enough for Clarey.
13:04
Daniel Hemetsberger (AUT)
Most recently, the Upper Austrian has demonstrated twice and achieved the best result of the red-white-red team in fourth place. However, Daniel Hemetsberger already had the suspicion that he might run out of power reserves on the long distance today, which turned out to be true. The 30-year-old swings down to eighth place after a mixed ride.
13:01
Marco Odermatt (SUI)
The leader in the overall World Cup and dominator in giant slalom has also reached the top of the world in the speed disciplines. First place on Thursday in the Super-G and second place in yesterday’s downhill run speak for themselves. At the Minsch Kante, Marco Odermatt was greeted by a huge cheer from the home fans, but lost time over the entire run. In the end, the 24-year-old missed the podium by just two hundredths.
12:57 p.m
Christoph Innerhofer (ITA)
The experienced South Tyrolean proved both in the Super-G and on yesterday’s descent that the top positions in Wengen are within reach for him. Again Christof Innerhofer starts very promising, but in the notorious Kernen-S he gambles away all chances of a front placement. At the finish, the 37-year-old sorted himself into a disappointing seventh place.
12:54
Aleksander Aamodt Kilde (NOR)
Now Vincent Kriechmayr’s best time is shaking, because the five-time winner of the season, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, catapults himself out of the starting gate! In the Hundschopf area, however, the Norwegian cannot keep up with the Austrian and he also lacks speed on the Langentrejen gliding passage. Even with a good final, Kilde clearly missed the podium places and is one of the beaten today.
12:52
Matthieu Bailet (FRA)
Matthieu Bailet had a wasted day yesterday when he was unable to score any World Cup points despite a good start number. Is the 25-year-old doing better this time? Not really. The Frenchman seems extremely hesitant on the skis and accordingly ranks far behind the two Germans Dominik Schwaiger and Romed Baumann.
12:49 p.m
Vincent Kriechmayr (AUT)
The reigning world champion in this discipline caused what must have been the biggest discussion of the weekend in advance, when the Upper Austrian was given the right to start despite not being able to train. On the slopes, however, Vincent Kriechmayr is not at all impressed and hits the best line in the Kernen-S. After that, the 30-year-old maintained the high pace and replaced Beat Feuz with a lead of more than three tenths in front of the first position.
12:46 p.m
Dominik Schwaiger (GER)
The profile of the Lauberhorn route, including the long gliding passages, does not usually suit the technically experienced Dominik Schwaiger. These fears are already reflected on the upper traverse shot and he is already more than 1.20 seconds behind the best time after the Hundschopf. In the end, the German can no longer correct anything and just finishes ahead of Romed Baumann. Even today it doesn’t seem to fit at DSV.
12:44
Dominik Paris (ITA)
Dominik Paris is currently in third position in the battle for the discipline classification, but still has every chance of winning the small crystal ball. The South Tyrol misses the last risk, especially in the difficult Kernen-S and loses three tenths at this point. In contrast to this, Paris sucks in the Hannegg shot and in the Ziel-S again and thus pushes Matthias Mayer from second place.
12:41
Martin Cater (SLO)
After some weaker results, Martin Cater ended up in the top ten again yesterday. Can the Slovenian build on this performance on the entire Lauberhorn route? Yes! Only in the Kernen-S Slovenian loses a few tenths and revs up again, especially in the last few meters. At the finish, the 29-year-old is only 32 hundredths behind Beat Feuz.
12:38 p.m
Beat Feuz (SUI)
The great hope of the Swiss fans catapulted energetically out of the starting gate! Beat Feuz has already been on the top step of the podium three times in Wengen and has made a promising start again today. The 34-year-old is ahead of the Kernen-S and also leaves this section with the fastest pace so far. The Swiss blunders briefly at the Silberhornsprung, but a strong final sprint gives Feuz the narrow lead.
12:36
Romed Baumann (GER)
Now, for the first time, things are getting serious for the German Ski Association! An early number is often an advantage on the Lauberhorn descent, can Romed Baumann benefit from it? In the upper traverse shot, the German drives the interim best time, but gambles away the entire cushion before the Hundschopf. Baumann then lacked speed, which is why he finally crossed the finish line 1.88 seconds behind Matthias Mayer.
12:32
Matthias Mayer (AUT)
It’s all about the action right from the start, because co-favorite Matthias Mayer opens the traditional Lauberhorn descent with start number one! The Carinthian enjoys the best slope conditions and puts in a small counter-swing on the Kernen-S to control the speed. Otherwise, the line is right for the 31-year-old Austrian, who only crosses the finish line after a total time of 2:26.60 minutes and sets the first target time of the day.
12:26
The external conditions
In contrast to the past few days, it has gotten a little warmer in the Bernese Oberland. The sun is shining over the track and the temperatures are now four degrees above freezing, which could well be noticeable on the track as the race progresses.
12:20 p.m
The daily task
The downhill classic in Wengen is not the most difficult route, but it is incredibly exhausting due to its enormous length: The start house is at an altitude of 2315 meters, after which the athletes have to cross the finish line over 4.2 kilometers. Gliding skills are required on the traverse shot at the beginning, until it gets really spectacular on the legendary Hundschopf. Tactical tricks and the best line are sought in the narrow Kernen-S, because another flat section follows with the Langentrejen section. After more than two minutes, the thighs are burning when the decision about victory or defeat is made after the Hannegg shot and the Silberhorn jump in the Ziel-S.
12:09 p.m
The other group of favorites
Once again, victory will most likely only go to Aleksander Aamodt Kilde. In his impressive comeback season, the strong Norwegian celebrated his fifth win of the season on the shortened descent yesterday and thus also took the lead in the discipline ranking. In addition to Kilde, Matthias Mayer, Beat Feuz and Marco Odermatt, it is especially important to pay attention to Dominik Paris. The South Tyrolean has never been on the podium in Wengen and of course wants to improve this statistic as soon as possible.
11:57
Farewell to Janka
On the one hand, the Swiss team wants to fight for the day’s victory on home soil in the Bernese Oberland, on the other hand, the end of Carlo Janka’s (car number 16) career will also be the focus. The former overall World Cup and Olympic champion completes the last race of his active career in Wengen. Beat Feuz (3) and Marco Odermatt (11), both of whom were on the podium yesterday and once again belong to the inner circle of favourites, will catapult themselves onto the slope beforehand. Niels Hintermann (20), Stefan Rogentin (21), Urs Kryenbühl (23), Gilles Roulin (32) and Justin Murisier (47) complete the Swiss team.
11:46
ÖSV team attacks the podium
In fourth place, Daniel Hemetsberger (car number 12) surprisingly became the best Austrian of the day and missed the step onto the podium by just a few hundredths. However, the 30-year-old didn’t feel very fit recently, which is why the full distance could become a problem for him today. Instead, Matthias Mayer (1) wants to take advantage of the optimal slope conditions and achieve the next podium place. Vincent Kriechmayr (7), Otmar Striedinger (15) and Max Franz (17) will certainly be expected. In addition, Daniel Danklmaier (27), Christian Walder (37) and Stefan Babinsky (46) follow with higher starting numbers for the ÖSV squad.
11:38
DSV team wants to fight back
The runners of the German Ski Association all had a completely wasted day yesterday and are therefore aiming for immediate compensation. Dominik Schwaiger was able to do best in the first descent in 24th place, but the 30-year-old will also want to improve on today’s classic with the good number six. Romed Baumann (start number 6) and Josef Ferstl (25), on the other hand, already proved on Thursday in the Super-G that top positions can be enough. While Simon Jocher (38) completes the DSV team, the problem child Andreas Sander is missing from the starting list after a persistent lack of form.
11:30
Warm welcome!
Hello and welcome to the Men’s Alpine World Cup in Wengen! After the Super-G on Thursday and the shortened descent yesterday, the full program awaits the athletes at the traditional Lauberhorn race. At 12:30 p.m., the Austrian Matthias Mayer opens the spectacle in the Bernese Oberland.
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