Lauren Macuga Triumphs In St. Anton 🤩 ｜ FIS Alpine Ski World Cup 2024⧸25 Highlights

Bit of sunshine starting to develop. Conditions are improving. Could be a weather race today. Somebody might get blue sky to show the way and guide them down the mountain to avoid any terrain traps. We've seen that before. A window in the weather can be crucial and visibility is improving. There's a shadow now behind our first racer on the hill, which is Kira Weidler-Winkelmann. Got married last summer, now uses her double barrelled married name, and she's the first one to ski this course. Really good, firm, much firmer conditions underfoot. So the women will get that instant feedback from the ski. 12th yesterday, Kira Weidler-Winkelmann. The course, incidentally, today set by one of the Swiss coaches, 40 high speed alternating red and blue control gates from top to bottom on the Karlsranchs course. Huge numbers out, enjoying the racing again. The start at 1950, the finish here at 1355 metres. And the time for Kira Weidler-Winkelmann, one minute, 18.78 seconds. She'll just have to see how that ranks as the others take their chances here on the Karlsranchs course. Her most recent World Cup Super G podium at the World Cup finals in Saalbach-Hinterglen. Last March, skates out of the start, had a 14th position in yesterday's World Cup downhill. Her former teammate and great friend, Ragnhild Möbinkl, the superstar of Norwegian skiing, who's now retired, is here watching this weekend and she'll be cheering for Kajsa Vikhoff-Leigh, who hasn't got great visibility, but has made a fine start. Kajsa Vikhoff-Leigh comes into the more technically demanding section of the course and focuses on the run to the line. Now, the Norwegian tucks in for the last three or four turns. Will it be green as she crosses the line? What, 18.78 to beat? No, it's red and Kajsa Vikhoff-Leigh goes into second. Weidler-Winkelmann stays in first position. Number seven, yesterday's winner. The incredible 34-year-old Italian from La Salle in the Elster Valley, just down the road from Latwil and Courmayeur. Latwil will host World Cup racing in March. Courmayeur is her home hill. And here goes Federica Brignone. Just a slight improvement in the visibility. There's a faint shadow following Brignone at the top of the course. Will that help her out? She got her first ever World Cup downhill win after a 14-year wait of being on the World Cup. Downhill victory was secured yesterday. Now she's going for the speed double. And what a start by Brignone here. Well, she's bringing all that confidence from her season so far. And of course, off the back of the win yesterday, watching this young woman, or this woman, I should say, not quite so young anymore, but watching Brignone on your screen right now is really something special. Stunning, stunning run so far. But there's the first mistake, and that is costly. You could see not nearly as clean as Kaiser before her, just getting twisted up, coming into the net. And now she is getting thrown around all over the place. That left ski bumping around, but still has that green light. Eight hundredths ahead of Kira Weidler-Winkelmann. She's got three victories already this season. Two in Giant Slalom from Sölden and Semmering. And then yesterday's downhill success on the Karl Schrantz course here in St. Antle. Can she add a Super-G victory, get her first Super-G win of the season? It's a little scruffy over the final few gates. Has Brignone done enough? Yes, she has. Point three five. Brignone leads for Italy. Out in front, she shakes her head. She thinks it might not be good enough, but only time will tell now. Wow. I mean, anybody else would have lost an absolute package down the bottom because, well, here's the first mistake. This is where you look. She's on the left ski. She's on the inside ski, that right ski just getting bounced around. Lara Guttlarami with no fewer than 45 World Cup wins, approaching 100 World Cup podiums, twice a winner in the St. Anton Super-G. She won't be worried about the visibility. And she's off on a charge at the top, hoping to make amends for yesterday's disappointing downhill race, where she made a huge mistake coming into the ice fell away in Sunday's Super-G and clean as you like so far. Just ever so slightly offline and having to do a little bit of a oh, that was another one, but a little bit of an adjustment in her line. Very, very clean on the top section. Really exciting to watch as always. Lara Gutt, the giant slalom special skier. Incredible skills. Also, the gliding skills and hoping to stay away from that fence, that netting on that right foot got incredibly close and had to adjust while catching an edge slightly there as well. The slight flat light just catching them out in places. A little bit bumpy underfoot, but she's she's absolutely flying. But there's a big mistake. Lara Guttlarami has the green light for the first time to put pressure on Federica Brignone's lead. She is the Super-G specialist. Not only is the Swiss star the reigning Super-G World Cup champion, she was also the 2022 Olympic champion, 2021 World Champion in Super-G. One of the greats from Swiss skiing. Lara Guttlarami is home in second. All relief for Brignone because she saw that big green light come on at the penultimate split before the finish. But it's no cigar today for Lara Guttlarami. Brignone's lead is secure, 1.18.43. Lara Guttlarami is 2.34 behind Federica Brignone. Wearing, that was a picture of Lara Guttlarami. Sofia Goggia is on her way for Italy. Wearing bib number 13, and she didn't finish yesterday. Came out of the course, collided with the safety netting, but was unhurt. And that was a relief to us all because, of course, she missed most of last season with a broken leg and took a while to get back into business. But Goggia is flying at the top here, 0.14 in touch with her teammate, Federica Brignone. Oh, ever so slightly offline to that section. And she has got me sitting on the edge of my seat. I am certainly awake right now. That is a seriously good recovery. Very exciting. Now, this is where she had her problem yesterday, 0.22 back. She's OK. She gets back. Oh, God, no, she's not OK. She nearly went into the net again. She rode the safety netting with her right ski. What a recovery from Goggia. Surely that has cost her the chance to challenge for top spot here. She's had a really good Super G season so far. Amazingly, she's got the green light again. She was the winner of the Beaver Creek Super G, the first round of Super G, and then she made it onto the podium in St. Moritz, which has always been a happy hunting ground for her. This is wild and a wild ride comes to an end for Sofia Goggia. Goodness me, another explosive demonstration of high speed ski racing. From the Maverick Italian, let's see what Stephanie Veneer can do now. She was the best of the Austrians on downhill day in St. Anton when she finished in fifth position in Saturday's race. Let's see what she can do in the Super G. Not a good start. She hooked her arm in the control gate and got her upper body twisted and therefore a lot of speed would have been taken away. It's also incredibly risky, but she is pushing seriously hard. She's incredibly look how clean she is on the outside ski. This is full of attack and full of commitment, and she has a little bit of light. That's going to make a massive difference to her confidence. Now comes in to this really, really tricky section. Remember, it's blind, but she's got the green light and she's got it by 0.28. Oh, she's very, yes, drifting massively, but diving down. Now carrying so much speed into the ice fall. This is going to come at her quicker than she might be ready for. No, it's good. 53.15. Vanier is way faster. 52 seconds and a little bit more for Stephanie Vanier with visibility. Sunshine has illuminated the course to show the way for Stephanie Vanier. She's making mistakes on the final few turns. She had a decent lead of 0.62 over Federica Brignone. Can Stephanie Vanier give Austria the lead in the Austrian Super G? Yes, she can. 0.24. Stephanie Vanier out in front for the host nation and the Austrians celebrate. Well, she can't believe it, can she? But, you know, she had that little bit of luck. Now, I don't like to talk about luck too much in ski racing because you make your own luck. But when the cloud breaks in a speed discipline like that, then you grab it by the horns. And that's what she did just right there. But she came through that bottom section with so much speed. 12th in the Super G. Super G season continued in style in San Maritz, when she posted seventh best in the Swiss Super G. And she was ninth yesterday. Lauren Massuga with sunshine and good visibility to guide her down the Karl Schrantz course. And she is full steam ahead already, Lauren Massuga. And with a green light early doors, seven hundredths of a second faster than our new leader, Stephanie Vanier. Well, she's absolutely sending it on the top section. Look at that. It's so beautiful now. Wow. This is a bit of delight to ski. And it's really going to keep this an incredibly exciting race. And Lauren now absolutely flying point to nine. How does she do through there? She keeps a really good line. She's able now with that good line. She's able to dive down that pitch, carry all her speed, comes through the shady section just from the trees. Very clean on the left foot. Of course, if you can see the bumps, you can deal with them. That was just about the best execution of the ice style, the entry and the exit that we've seen from any of our 16 previous starters. And Lauren Massuga, who's never had a World Cup win, is skiing for success here in St. Anton, absolutely flying from start to finish a little late in the line. Fatigue starting to play its part. Three green lights. Has she done enough? Five miles. She's done enough. Massuga leads for the USA, point six, eight out in front. She leads the St. Anton Super G. Could she be on her way to her first ever World Cup victory? She's never even had a podium. Oh, I love it. Oh, just that is just so special, isn't it? You know, you work your whole life for that kind of moment. And of course, it doesn't come to everybody. But if it does and when it does, wow, that is how you want to react. It's just she didn't expect that, did she? She she looked almost stunned. But then when it when she realized what she's actually done. And Yvonne with that familiar fiddling with the hands around her ski poles as she sets up to push hard out of the start gate and attack the St. Anton Super G course. The 40 year old American with no fewer than 82 World Cup wins in her career and 137 World Cup podiums is now going in the hunt of her younger teammates time. The lead in St. Anton belongs to Lauren Masuga. Can Lindsey Vonn get involved in the top positions again today like she did on Saturday? Well, she's building with every run that she does, building confidence, building her skiing, and she's so super soft and smooth on to the new outside ski. Just got a little bit stuck in a bit of soft snow, which is unfortunate through that section. But wow, she's the fastest back into the tuck. Comes out briefly, momentarily back into it full of aggression as she dives down there. Now it's bumpy on that left foot. Let's hope she can be clean. Oh, a little bit in the back seat, but boy, look at the time. Just three tenths the wrong side. Three tenths off the pace, Vonn getting a little late in the line again. A risky run from Lindsey Vonn, but she's making another statement as she did on Saturday, and she's got the crowd on their feet. Everybody cheering, watching Lindsey Vonn hit the lower few turns on the Karl Schrantz course. She's a little wide in the line again. Lindsey Vonn, home and dry in the Super G, finishes in fourth position. Another incredible performance from Lindsey. It's almost like she's not human. Maybe she's an extraterrestrial. I mean, that's incredible. She's fourth. Wow. So smooth, so clean. Got late at the bottom, but drew on all her experience. So she didn't lose speed. This is insane. Wow. Back to the top. And Mallory Blanc is ready to race for Switzerland. What a day yesterday with bib number 46. Mallory Blanc from Auxerre, just alongside the famous resort of Croix-Montana, came into second position, missing the win behind Federica Brignone by just seven hundredths of a second. Oh, and it was going so well until the right footer, very, very close to the netting and very much in that soft snow. Luckily, of course, she has the dive down into the ice ball to get that speed back up. It's still good. Not quite as good as yesterday. But wow, this woman has a seriously exciting future. Very good and clean through this section. She has skis very similar to Vonn actually, uses that very sensitive underfoot and just doesn't panic when she runs out late. Mallory Blanc finishes the Sunday Super G with another top ten performance. Equal ninth in the St. Anton Super G to back up yesterday's runners up position. Lauren Lesuga. A breakthrough moment for the 22 year old American. This is something she will never forget. Draped in the American colors from head to foot. And Federica Brignone completes a stunning weekend for her. Got her maiden World Cup downhill win today. Makes it onto the podium in the Sunday Super G with third, followed by Vonn, Lara Kuperami, Kira Vidler, Vinkelman, who was first down the mountain. Then Lee Suter and Mallory Blanc gets another top ten to add to her second place yesterday. Second on day one, equal ninth on day two. And Nadine Fest is the last of the points scorers. In today's Super G in St. Anton, another good race, Emma. Oh, another excellent race, Matt. Really enjoyed that one. Some very special skiing, a bit of a mixed bag with the weather coming in and out. But it's incredible to see the two Americans. Lauren in first and Von, of course, in fourth.