It’s a second place which is equivalent to a feat. Immense Sofia Goggia returned to competitions after yet another injury, and operation, he immediately reached the podium in the World Cup. The Italian came second in the downhill, the first of the season preceding that of the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic Games, in Beaver Creek just 16 cents behind the Austrian Cornelia Huetter who won in 1’32″38. Descent with the bib 7, Goggia had set the best time then beaten by the 32 year old from Graz with her seventh success in the Cup and she went to the gate strong in the specialty cup.
The blue one, a month younger than the Austrian, 313 days after the dramatic injury during training in Ponte di Legno – fracture of the tibia and right tibial malleolus immediately surgically reduced – she returned to smile on the Cup podium, number 55 of her career, twentieth second place. On the ‘Birds of Prey’ track, Goggia took a risk with a gleaning after ten seconds of the race but then unleashed his determination and above all his horses. Well in the technical section which had created some of us in the three tests, Sofia then committed a small imperfection in the final section which probably cost the victory.
The Swiss Lara Gut-Behrami also reached the podium, 34 seconds behind the winner. Seventh Marta Bassino (at 0″64), ninth Federica Brignone (at 0″87). “A good race, not excellent, in my opinion I managed to ski more discreetly on my feet in the upper part. It’s as if I had skied for the entire race at 80% of my potential”, said Goggia upon arrival. “It’s an excellent result for which I would have signed on the eve, but having left down those 16 cents in the last part that cost me the victory, they are there for me, they will be the fire for the super giant on Sunday (tomorrow, ed.)”, continued the Fiamme Gialle standard bearer.
In the overall Cup, the Swiss Camille Rast leads with 287 points ahead of the American Mikaela Shiffrin with 245 (she underwent surgery following the fall in Killington) and the Croatian Zrinka Ljutic (202). Best Italian, Brignone, eleventh (129). Tomorrow, again at Beaver Creek, the first super-giant of the season: starting at 7pm Italian time.