Garmisch-Partenkirchen Alpine Ski World Cup Races Preview
- Raúl Revuelta
- 5 hours ago
- 3 min read
On Saturday, February 28th, and Sunday, March 1st, Garmisch-Partenkirchen will host a Downhill and a Super-G Alpine Ski World Cup races on the famous Kandahar slope.
Germany’s highest mountain, Germany’s steepest ski slope - the legendary Kandahar-Downhill racecourse-, or Germany’s most spectacular cable car are some of the reasons to watch the Garmisch-Partenkirchen Alpine Ski World Cup Races next weekend.
Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany, which borders Austria. It is located at the foot of Zugspitze, Germany's highest mountain (2,962 meters a.s.l.).
Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the former twin cities "under the Zugspitze", is one of the most famous ski resorts of the whole Alpine region. The Bavarian town hosted the Olympic Winter Games in 1936, the Arlberg Kandahar races since 1954, the FIS Ski World Cups since 1970, the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in 1978 and 2011, and the FIS Alpine Junior World Ski Championships in 2009. For that reason, Garmisch-Partenkirchen is considered the cradle of ski racing in Germany.
Garmisch Partenkirchen (GER)
February 28th Downhill / Men 11:45 CET
March 1st Super-G / Men 11:45 CET
The Kandahar in Garmisch is considered one of the most demanding race courses in the Alpine Ski World Cup. The slope became one of the five venues for the Arlberg-Kandahar race, named after Frederick Roberts, the Earl of Kandahar.
The Briton Frederick Roberts, Baron Roberts of Kandahar and Waterford, donated a trophy for a ski race in 1911 called the “Challenge Roberts of Kandahar”. The race was held in the Austrian town of St. Anton am Arlberg in the 1920s. Garmisch-Partenkirchen has been the venue for the traditional Arlberg-Kandahar races since 1954.
The Kandahar 2 Men's Downhill start is located at Kreuzjoch at 1,690 meters above sea level. After the Schußanger with its two curves comes a jump into the Himmelreich, where the start of the Women's Super-G start is located. The Waldeck with the highest gradient is a technically demanding traverse. Here, a new route has begun since the 2008 adaptations: the Eishang is bypassed via the Ramwiesen, and via the Höllentor, it returns to the original Kandahar in the Hölle (Hell), a steep slope. This is followed by the FIS-Schneise, a diagonal route that, after a left-foot bend, flows into the Tauber-Schuss.
Kandahar Racecourse facts:
Start Elevation: 1690 m
Finish Elevation: 770 m
Vertical Drop: 920 m
Length: 2920 m
Max. slope: 85 %
Dominik Paris won the last Downhill held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 2021. After Kvitfjell's win in March 2025, the 35-year-old speed specialist joined Peter Müller in second place on the all-time Downhill winners list with 19 World Cup wins. Franz Klammer remains ahead with 25 victories.
On January 27th, 2024, Nils Allegre won the first of the two Super-Gs held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. It was the first win and World Cup podium for the French skier. In a race full of surprises, Nils Allegre set the fastest time on the Kandahar slope in the first Super-G held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, beating Italian Guglielmo Bosca by 0.18 seconds. Bosca also achieved his first podium in the Alpine Ski World Cup. Loic Meillard finished in third place, 0.25 seconds behind Allegre.
On Sunday, January 28th, 2024, Marco Odermatt won the second Super-G held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. He finished ahead of Raphael Haaser (+0.30) and teammate Franjo Von Allmen (+0.61).
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