After second place in the first downhill and fifth in the second, Lara Gut-Behrami achieved success at the 2024 edition of the Cortina Audi Fis Ski World Cup, the women’s Alpine skiing World Cup proposed by the Cortina Foundation. The Swiss champion achieved victory on the third and final day, the one dedicated to the super-G, on Sunday 28 January. For Gut-Behrami, this is yet another satisfaction achieved on the Olympia delle Tofane where she had already won three times in the World Cup (in 2014 and 2018 in super-G, in 2017 in downhill) and where at the 2021 World Championships she had won two golds ( super-G and giant slalom) and a bronze (downhill). The Swiss champion was the author of a race without imperfections, prevailing with 21 cents over the Austrian Stephanie Venier (winner of the first descent, with a 39 cents advantage over Gut-Behrami) and with 41 cents over the French Romane Miradoli.
Three Italians finished in the top ten: 5. Sofia Goggia (third in the two descents), 6. Marta Bassino and 9. Federica Brignone.
“I think I’ve skied well these days” comments Lara Gut-Behrami. “To perform, you need to pay maximum attention to every single detail, which is not easy and requires a lot of sacrifices. Has the Cup reopened after these three days in Cortina? Let’s wait, the points are only counted at the end.”
“I hadn’t finished a super-G in Cortina since 2017, so this alone makes me say that the balance is positive. Today I think I skied reasonably well, except for the mistake at the Grande Curva, where I braked a little too much” says Sofia Goggia. “From these three days I bring home two thirds and a fifth place. The acute situation was missing but the balance is largely positive”.
“Three days of very high level competitions, with 350 people working and a large audience, something we haven’t seen for a long time at the Rumerlo finish area” says Michele Di Gallo, general director of the Cortina Foundation. “I like to underline the presence of 1200 students from schools in the Veneto region, as well as the presence of over 600 kids from the ski clubs: a beautiful glimpse into the future”.
“We are closing an excellent edition of the Cortina Audi Fis Ski World Cup” comments the president of the Cortina Foundation, Stefano Longo. “The first two days, characterized by strong gusts of wind, were not easy. A great job was done by the healthcare sector which guaranteed the safety of the athletes as much as possible. I must congratulate the entire organization, the volunteers, the Alpine Troops and the police forces who have once again put their passion and professionalism into play. We are already thinking about 2025, working in particular to host the fans and enthusiasts who come to visit us in an even more welcoming way. There were many moments to remember during these three days, I’ll mention two: the tribute to Elena Fanchini, the champion who won here in 2015, and the award ceremony for Lara Gut-Behrami by Barbara Von Bergen, the winning Dutch champion of the Paralympic Downhill World Cup last season: this award ceremony represents the ideal passing of the baton between the Women’s World Cup and the Paralympic Alpine Skiing Cup which will start tomorrow and which will be a real test event in view of the 2026. Two weeks of great skiing for the Cortina Foundation, under the motto, which is intended to be not just a slogan, but a real work program, “sNOwDIFFERENCE”.