Cyprien Sarrazin triumphs in the first Downhill held on the Streif. The Frenchman beats Italian Florian Schieder by 0.05 seconds. Marco Odermatt finished in third place +0.34 seconds behind. Ryan Cochran-Siegle finished in fourth place missing the podium by a mere one hundredth.
Sarrazin confirmed today in Kitzbühel what he showed in Bormio and Wengen and achieved his second victory in the Downhill this season. The 29-year-old French skier won the Downhill in The Stelvio in Bormio and finished in second place in the two Downhills held in Wengen. He also won the Super-G in Wengen. Now he was crowned Kitzbühel winner in his 13th World Cup Downhill race.
Sarrazin became the first Frenchman to win multiple Downhill World Cup races in a single season since Antoine Dénériaz won two in 2002-2003. He became the third French winner of the Downhill in the Streif, after Jean-Claude Killy in 1967, and Luc Alphand in 1995 and 1997.
"Kitzbühel winner sounds unreal. Bormio was my first downhill victory. It felt different. Every victory feels somehow different. My last time here I crashed into the nets and this time when I crossed the finish, I thought this was a victory for me. It was not a perfect run, not an amazing run, but I finished with my heart. I knew that I had some mistakes and that I had to finish very fast and that’s what I did. I didn’t feel good at the top, but at the bottom, I was physically perfect and I said ‘Push, push’ to the finish line", Sarrazin said.
For the second time, Florian Schieder finishes in second place in the Downhill on the Streif. His only World Cup podium finish came in the Downhill on the Streif on January 20, 2023, when the 28-year-old skier from South Tyrol finished in second place behind Vincent Kriechmayr.
"Everything went well until the Hausbergkante. Maybe I lost it then. It's a shame about the five hundredths, but Sarrazin is in great form. Staying in front of Odermatt isn't that bad either. I don't know why I feel so comfortable here. Maybe the public, maybe the myth. I always come to the village entrance with a grin. I like the slope, it's very challenging. Maybe you can make up for the lack of technical skills with courage", Schieder said.
Marco Odermatt celebrated in Kitzbühel his 12th World Cup podium this season. Of the 13 races he competed this winter, he won 7 and finished on the podium in 5 more. A seventh place in the Val Gardena Downhill was his worst result.
"It's always nice to cross the finish line with green. But I quickly knew that it wouldn't be enough to win today. It wasn’t the perfect run. If everything doesn't go perfectly, you can't win in Kitzbühel. I sensed from the first sector that something wasn't right. I hadn’t found a perfect run in training either. It wasn't my best run of the season, but I am pleased with a podium here", Odermatt said.