Skiing
Hahnenkamm delivers: Crawford, Noël and Odermatt are the big winners
The legendary alpine ski weekend threw up its usual mix of big surprises, dominant performances and white-knuckle high-speed thrills. Find out what went down right here.
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The 85th Hahnenkamm weekend just wrapped up and it's safe to say it didn't let the standards set by the first 84 drop in the slightest. From the Super-G on the Friday, through the duel for the golden gams (chamois) in the fabled downhill on Saturday, all the way to the slalom on Sunday, every race delivered on its promise.
So, who was the fastest and most fearless downhill skier, who shook off their opponents between the slalom gates on the Ganslern slope, who beat the icy conditions in the Super-G and what were the biggest stories? We've put them all together below.
01
Marco Odermatt took his first Kitz victory in the Super-G
At last! Marco Odermatt celebrates his first win in Kitzbühel
© Samo Vidic/Red Bull Content Pool
Marco Odermatt is currently the best skier in the world - and has won (almost) everything in his career. The only thing missing from his trophy cabinet was a victory on the Streif in Kitzbühel. He erased this little oversight on Friday in the Hahnenkamm Super-G. After Flying Bulls pilot Eskil Amdal fired up the atmosphere with his airshow in a P-51D Mustang, Marco Waltenspiel, Marco Fürst and Max Manow from the Red Bull Skydive Team as well as Paul Steiner and Florian Greger from the HSV Red Bull Salzburg skydivers landed directly in the finish area of the Streif to the cheers of the waiting fans. Now the race could begin.
Flying Bulls pilot Eskil Amdal thrilled spectators with his display
© Joerg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool
The skydivers also put on a great show
© Joerg Mitte /Red Bull Content Pool
With bib number eight on, Odermatt managed a strong run and celebrated a comfortable lead of 0.89s as he crossed the line.
Marco Odermatt is the fastest man on the Streif
© Samo Vidic/Red Bull Content Pool
However, Odermatt was made to sweat three times as he watched the rest of the race, which was characterised by many retirements. His Swiss colleague Franjo von Allmen was even ahead of the overall World Cup leader in the intermediate times, but lost important time in the lower section. Stefan Rogentin was just 0.3s off his pace at the finish and local hero Raphael Haaser gave the red-white-red fans something to cheer about with a strong finish in second place.
Final result Hahnenkamm Super-G:
Hahnenkamm Super-G
Rank
Person
Nationality
Column
2
Raphael Haaser
AUT
+0:11s
3
Stefan Rogentin
SUI
+0:30s
5
Cameron Alexander
CAN
+0:60s
02
James Crawford grabs the golden chamois
The Hahnenkamm downhill always writes special stories. In 2025, the script of the legendary competition for speed demons once again had plenty of surprises in store. Anyone who thought that nobody stood a chance against the Swiss crew led by superstar Odermatt and von Allmen was proved wrong on Saturday. Because in the most spectacular downhill race in the world, a Canadian outdid everyone else. James 'Jack' Crawford was number 20 out of the starting gate - the 27-year-old Canadian celebrated his greatest success in 2023 when he became Super-G World Champion. He'd previously made it onto the podium four times at World Cups, but had yet to win a race in his career. The fact that he celebrated this success with a dream run at the Hahnenkamm Downhill of all places and claimed the golden gams was a real sensation. He relegated Switzerland's Alexis Monney to second place by eight 100ths of a second. With Cameron Alexander in third place, another Canadian rounded off the podium.
Crawford was overwhelmed with emotion at the finish line. "I have no words for how it feels to win here in Kitzbühel. It's every downhill racer's dream to celebrate a victory on the Streif and to be presented with the golden gams in front of thousands of fans. I will never forget this day for the rest of my life!"
James Crawford on his way to his first World Cup victory - on the Streif
© Joerg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool
Final result Hahnenkamm downhill:
Hahnenkamm Downhill
Rank
Person
Nationality
Time
2
Alexis Monney
SUI
+0:08s
3
Cameron Alexander
CAN
+0:22s
4
Daniel Hemetsberger
AUT
+0:43s
5
Miha Hrobat
SLO
+0:51s
03
Clément Noël wins the Hahnenkamm Slalom
Clément Noël carving it up
© Samo Vidic/Red Bull Content Pool
The last race of the 85th Hahnenkamm weekend was not for the faint-hearted. It was a thrilling finale to a fantastic ski weekend in Kitzbühel. After Switzerland and Canada, France also added its name to the list of winners. After finishing fourth in the first run, Clément Noël stormed to first place ahead of Alex Vinatzer and Lucas Pinheiro Braathen with a strong run. It wasn't his first taste of success here, either. French slalom star Noël was the first winner at this Hahnenkamm weekend who had already experienced the feeling of being at the top of the podium. After 2019, today's victory in the Hahnenkamm slalom is his second triumph on the Gamsstadt - and his 14th World Cup win in his career. With this success, the 27-year-old also took the lead in the slalom World Cup from Henrik Kristoffersen, who dropped out on the first run.
Getting to the finish line is more of a challenge in Kitzbühel than on other courses. The profile of the slalom slope is special, the transitions treacherous. The slalom skiers are fully challenged from the first to the last pole. Norway's Timon Haugan held the lead after the first run, but dropped out on his second before he could claim his third World Cup victory. This not only benefited Noël, who celebrated his victory at the finish, but also Alex Vinatzer, who put in a sensational run to move up from 11th place to second.
Clément Noël finished ahead of Alex Vinatzer and Lucas Pinheiro Braathen
© Joerg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool
The top 3 in the Hahnenkamm slalom celebrate with their chamois
© Joerg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool
There was also an impressive showing from Lucas Pinheiro Braathen who claimed third place. The Brazilian, one of the most charismatic skiers of his generation, only returned to competitive racing in October of last year after choosing to come out of retirement.
Pinheiro Braathen claimed another podium on his comeback
© Samo Vidic/Red Bull Content Pool
Pinheiro Braathen, who has now collected two Slalom podiums this season, said: "Honestly, I was so disappointed and just to say for the record, I would be proud of a fifth in Kitzbühel or a sixth-place or whatever… but I have a third and I have a second on this hill and it’s my dream to walk out with a Golden Gams one day. It’s missing on my shelf back home and I wanted it so bad."
Final result Hahnenkamm Slalom:
Hahnenkamm Slalom
Rank
Person
Nationality
Time
4
Kristoffer Jakobsen
SWE
+0:21s
5
Linus Strasser
GER
+0:28s
04
A race preview like no other
2 min
Dario Costa's Streif course preview
Dario Costa gives us the ultimate track review of the world’s most dangerous skiing challenge: the Streif.
Ahead of the weekend's races, in a display of nerve and skill, Italian pilot Dario Costa flew his Zivko Edge 540 plane tight to every challenging twist and turn of downhill skiing's most notorious course, the Streif. Combining with the legendary Daron Rahlves, winner of the 2003 Hahnenkamm downhill race, the duo fly down the track at triple-digit speeds, giving fans of skiing, aviation and everyone else in between a unique perspective on an already-thrilling spectacle. Hit play on the video above to witness the ultimate Hahnenkamm race preview.
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