(Saalbach-Hinterglemm) Switzerland’s Marco Odermatt obtained a fourth crystal globe on the World Cup circuit this season on Sunday, but in rather bizarre circumstances.
Odermatt didn’t need to race down the slope in Saalbach, Austria, because the final downhill of the season was canceled due to bad weather.
Odermatt’s first career downhill title made the 26-year-old skier become the third man to win all four titles in a season and the first since Hermann Maier.
“It’s something very special,” Odermatt said. I talked to Hermann two years ago, when I won my first globes, and he told me it was “cool” when you couldn’t hold all the globes. I think it will be a good feeling. »
Odermatt secured a third overall title and the giant slalom title a few weeks ago. He lifted the crystal globe in super-G on Friday.
The start of Sunday’s men’s downhill was initially pushed back several times due to snow and wind, while organizers continued to work on the Saalbach course. But it was officially canceled more than an hour after its scheduled start.
“Unfortunately, due to the current weather situation with wind and snow affecting track conditions, to ensure the safety of the athletes, today’s men’s downhill has been cancelled,” the federation said. skiing on the social network X, formerly known as Twitter.
This cancellation offered Odermatt the crystal globe, while his lead of 42 points ahead of French skier Cyprien Sarrazin, the only one who could catch up with him in the rankings, was sufficient.
Odermatt, however, did not have the opportunity to set a men’s points record. A victory in the downhill would have given him 100 points and allowed him to surpass his record of 2042 set last season by five points.
Aleksander Aamodt Kilde had won the downhill crystal globe the previous two years, but his season ended prematurely due to an injury suffered in January.