It’s a sign of how dominant Austria’s Marcel Hirscher is in the Slalom – where he is the five-time seasonal champion – that when he finished third in the Slalom in Wengen (SUI), it was widely considered an upset. He’ll try to get his 10th win of the season this week in front of his home fans in Kitzbuehel (AUT), while it’s not clear if American star Mikaela Shiffrin will ski in Garmisch (GER). What to watch for:
● Men’s Super-G, Downhill and Slalom in Kitzbuehel
Hirscher has all but sewn up his eighth straight seasonal World Cup title, as he has a 1,036-621 lead over Henrik Kristoffersen (NOR) after 23 of 41 races. He is leading in the Giant Slalom and Slalom disciplines as well and will be trying to win a 10th race in a season for the second straight year.
He equaled the record for most World Cup wins in a season in 2017-18 with 13, and with four Giant Slaloms and five Slaloms remaining in the season, he could set the record by itself. And he could be in a fight with Shiffrin with the most wins in a season ever; the record-holder is Vreni Schneider (SUI) from 1989; she had 14.
In the speed races, we’re about halfway through the schedule and the point totals are close:
Downhill (5 of 9 races completed):
1. Beat Feuz (SUI), 340; 2. Vincent Kriechmayr (AUT), 249; 3. Max Franz (AUT), 222.
Super-G (4 of 8 races completed):
1. Aksel Lind Svindal (NOR), 219; 2. Mauro Caviezel (SUI), 190; 3. Matthias Mayer (AUT), 188.
Last season in Kitzbuehel, Thomas Dressen (GER) won the Downhill; Svindal won the Super-G and Kristoffersen scored a win over Hirscher in the Slalom. Look for results here.
● Women’s Downhill and Super-G at Garmisch
No indication yet whether Shiffrin will ski in Garmisch, where the Super-G will be held on Sunday and she has won three of the four races held so far this season.
Barring injury, Shiffrin is in position to win her third straight overall World Cup, leading Petra Vlhova (SVK) by 1,494-898 after 22 of 37 races. No woman has won three in a row since American Lindsey Vonn did it in 2008-09-10.
Among the mortals, the seasonal leaders:
Downhill (5 of 9 races completed):
1. Nicole Schmidhofer (AUT), 328; 2. Ramona Siebenhofer (AUT), 320; 3. Ilka Stuhec (SLO), 209.
Super-G (4 of 7 races completed):
1. Mikaela Shiffrin (USA), 300; 2. Tina Weirather (LIE), 236; 3. Ragnhild Mowinckel (NOR), 211.
Last season in Garmisch, Vonn won both Downhills over Italy’s Sofia Goggia, who followed those performances with an Olympic Downhill gold in PyeongChang. Goggia has been sidelined with injuries, but is expected to make her season debut this weekend. Look for results here.
