Men’s departure from Beaver Creek –
A Swiss double victory – but a teammate falls badly
At the age of 32, Justin Murisier won the World Cup for the first time, triumphing ahead of his friend Marco Odermatt. Arnaud Boisset is transported away in the rescue sleigh.
The party after the race: Marco Odermatt, Justin Murisier and Miha Hrobat (from left) at the award ceremony.
Foto: Sean M. Haffey (Getty Images)
Justin Murisier, downhill champion. Downhill winner!
What happened Friday in Beaver Creek requires repeating to believe. The Valais native will be 33 in January, and he has probably had to take at least that many blows in the neck in his career. “Others would have given up long ago,” says Marco Odermatt, who comes closest to his copain and comes second, two tenths behind. “He has been through an incredible amount. The fact that he has now won for the first time is great.”
Murisier’s injury history fills entire medical records. Listing all the injuries would go beyond the scope, so “just” this: his back caused him problems for years, and an operation was unavoidable in 2022. But most importantly, his cruciate ligament broke three times, he had cartilage damage, a meniscus injury and shoulder operations. He kept asking himself whether it made sense to continue fighting; even today he still feels pain every now and then when he gets out of the car or gets up from the table.
Murisier is rarely able to complete the full training program; his knee is a constant work in progress. At the summer camp in Chile, he was barely able to complete a run without symptoms. Thanks to injections, things have recently been looking up.
In this respect, his coup on the technically extremely demanding Birds of Prey cannot be overestimated. He has only placed in the top 10 in a downhill four times before, and he has only been on the podium once, in 2020 when he came third in the giant slalom in Alta Badia.
He thought he had forgotten how to ski
Murisier was once a specialist in technical disciplines. His focus has long been on speed racing, but he was forced to ignore the slalom years ago. Some people used to roll their eyes, Murisier once said, “certain experts no longer trusted me to switch to the downhill route.” Now he is collecting the big reward, which does not mean the 47,000 francs in prize money, but rather the confirmation that he has made it to the top after all. To where he could have been much sooner. Yes, considering his abilities, it should have been.
After the victory, Murisier struggles with emotions, his eyes are red. He showed a perfect ride, he says, and adds with some disbelief: “Just last week during the training sessions at Copper Mountain, I thought I had forgotten how to ski. I was incredibly slow. It’s unbelievable how well it’s worked.”
But this week wasn’t entirely without problems either; it would hardly have suited Murisier. In the first training session he dislocated his shoulder and immediately dislocated it again. His cousin William Besse, who is part of his supervisory staff, is certainly also happy about his success. The now 56-year-old won almost at the same place thirty years ago, a few miles away in Vail.
Odermatt is initially annoyed
Murisier and Odermatt ensure the third Swiss downhill double victory in Beaver Creek; In 2009 Carlo Janka won ahead of Didier Cuche, nine years later Beat Feuz triumphed ahead of Mauro Caviezel.
Odermatt, number 1 in the downhill world rankings, seems a bit annoyed immediately after his ride. «It wasn’t what I wanted to show – I made two small mistakes in the upper part. That’s why I was annoyed. But when I saw that Justin was ahead, I immediately found my smile again. We’re basically best friends.”
The three-time overall World Cup winner still has the certainty that he will be very fast; he remains just ahead of the surprisingly strong Slovenian Miha Hrobat, who comes third. From a Swiss perspective, Marco Kohler is also convincing, coming 15th in his comeback after a serious knee injury – immediately behind his teammates Alexis Monney and Stefan Rogentin.
Swiss-Ski’s joy was marred by the accident involving Arnaud Boisset from Valais, who fell heavily shortly before the finish, hit his head hard on the piste and remained motionless. He is transported away in the rescue sleigh and taken to the hospital. When the race is over, the all-clear comes: Boisset is conscious. He suffered a concussion and bruises to his face and shoulder area. The 26-year-old will travel back to Switzerland in the next few days. How long he will be out is uncertain.
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Yesterday, 8:44 p.m
Justin Murisier wins, Marco Odermatt comes second. What a success for Swiss-Ski. With Alexis Monney and Stefan Rogentin (11th) and Marco Kohler (13th) at the same time, three more Swiss are in the top 15. Lars Rösti also impresses with 16th place. The joy was only marred by the fall of Arnaud Boisset from Valais, who was transported away in the rescue sleigh.
Yesterday, 8:43 p.m
Innerhofer is the only one in the starting field who has already won the downhill on the “Birds of Prey”, he won here in 2012. But the 39-year-old’s best days are long gone. Nevertheless, he still dreams of taking part in the 2026 Olympics at home in Italy. Today it’s only enough for 26th place.
Yesterday, 8:41 p.m
At the age of 40, the Frenchman actually changed materials again. Will it be of any use? It’s enough for 24th place. As a reminder: Théaux won Super-G bronze at the 2015 World Championships in Beaver Creek.
Yesterday, 8:39 p.m
The Finn trains as part of a cooperation with the Swiss downhill team. He is an extremely strong glider, but surprisingly cannot keep up with the fastest at the top. Lehto was recently ill and was wondering whether he should skip the race. It’s enough for intermediate rank 24.
Yesterday, 8:37 p.m
After a break of around 25 minutes, the race continues, but not much is likely to be possible now. The Austrian is unsettled, which is not surprising after the long interruption. He lost almost four seconds and came last.
Yesterday, 8:30 p.m
The Swiss Arnaud Boisset, who fell badly, is taken away from the slopes in a rescue sled. We wish you a speedy recovery. An update on his health is not yet available.
Yesterday, 8:23 p.m
Arnaud Boisset continues to receive medical care. How the Valaisian is doing is unclear. The race is interrupted.
Yesterday, 8:11 p.m
Like Franjo von Allmen, Boisset injured his knee during pre-season preparation and therefore skipped the camp in South America. After a good start, the man from Lower Valais made a few mistakes. And just before the finish it happens: Boisset falls violently and hits the safety net. He received a blow to the head.
Yesterday, 8:09 p.m
The American has no chance: he ranks 23rd and at the bottom of the rankings.
Yesterday, 8:07 p.m
In 2017, the American became junior world champion in downhill. However, he never took off with the big guys. But Morse seems to be satisfied with intermediate place 17, he is at least cheering.
Yesterday, 8:04 p.m
The Bernese Oberlander fell on the Lauberhorn in January, but the 27-year-old has recovered well from the torn cruciate ligament. He has never competed in an entire World Cup season. The comeback is about finding confidence again. 13th place is a strong performance – Kohler celebrates at the finish.
Yesterday, 8:02 p.m
The man from Nidwalden (2nd place) says: “It wasn’t the ride I wanted to show. I made two small mistakes above. That’s why I was annoyed. But when I saw that Justin was in the lead, I immediately found my smile. He’s been through so much, it’s great for him.”
Yesterday, 8 p.m
The Austrian was very fast at the top in training and is still at the forefront in that section of the race. But after that, hardly anything works for Otti, whose fan club is considered one of the most respected in the World Cup. It’s only enough for 20th place.
Yesterday, 7:58 p.m
The air may not be exactly outside, but at least the podium should be set in stone. The Norwegian Sejersted, one of the daredevils in the downhill circuit, is having a hard time and comes 16th.
Yesterday, 7:56 p.m
The Graubünden native found a main sponsor just in time before the start of the season. On the piste, however, things aren’t going quite so well: 1.52 seconds behind are enough for 11th place. It’s not quite what Rogentin was hoping for.
Yesterday, 7:51 p.m
After Bailet’s fall, the safety nets had to be rebuilt. It should continue in about two minutes.
Yesterday, 7:46 p.m
The Frenchman is a loner and in the French team he gets a single room. Bailet also stands out on the piste, mostly with daring lines and tactics. And lo and behold: Bailet might even have been able to catch third Miha Hrobat, but shortly before the finish he was eliminated after an unnecessary driving error.
Yesterday, 7:43 p.m
The Austrian is considered a Super-G specialist, but he still needs to gain experience in downhill. He clings to the line a bit too hard and doesn’t let the skis move enough. The result: 1.60 seconds behind, 13th place.
Yesterday, 7:41 p.m
The Frenchman has been one of the reliable place drivers in the premier discipline for years. Top rankings cannot be expected from him. It’s enough for position 12.
Yesterday, 7:40 p.m
The Super-G world champion from Canada shows a very strong performance, thanks to a very steep slope it is enough for intermediate place 4. Murisier and Odermatt remain at the front.
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