Goggia Crowns A Golden Season With Super G Glory And First Crystal Globe In The Discipline

There was only ever going to be one winner of the Super G Crystal Globe, and on Sunday in Kvitfjell, Sofia Goggia made absolutely certain of it in the most emphatic way imaginable — by winning the race.

Skiing in her trademark aggressive style on a downhillers' Super G course, Goggia took her third Super G victory of the season, beating Corinne Suter of Switzerland by 0.32 seconds, with Germany's Kira Weidle-Winkelmann a further 0.28 seconds back in third.

The win handed the 33-year-old Bergamo native the Super G Crystal Globe — one of the few accolades in the sport to have so far eluded the Italian superstar across a career that has already accumulated four downhill globes and three Olympic medals. On Sunday, she filled the gap.

"Those last few days have been really exhausting, especially mentally," Goggia said. "I really had to stay on the ball, and today I focused only on my performance. When I saw the green light, my heart exploded."

The women's Super G season had come down to the wire in Kvitfjell, with New Zealand's Alice Robinson remaining within striking distance heading into the final race. Robinson needed a top-two finish to keep her title hopes alive. She never got close. Robinson made too many errors when it counted, finishing 2.41 seconds behind Goggia.

Charging down the Olympiabakken with characteristic aggression, Goggia laid it all on the line and secured not only the race victory but the Super G Crystal Globe in emphatic fashion.

"If you want to be a complete speed skier, you have to get both the globes in downhill and Super G, and today I finally did it," Goggia said. "I had really good consistency this year in Super G, so I think this cup is super well deserved."

Knowing the globe was virtually secure, an emotional Goggia put her head in her hands and was in tears in the finish area. "When you have pressure, you have to handle it, so I'm happy for the outcome," she said in explaining her emotion.

Goggia's only mathematical challenger for the globe entering the race, Robinson, started three skiers later, couldn't match Goggia in the mid-section and ultimately finished 16th on the day and second in the standings. "It's definitely been a big step from 17th last year (in the Super G standings) to second this year," Robinson said.

"For sure I've still got some areas I still need to work on to be a fully rounded Super G skier. There's a lot to be proud of but still a lot to do."

It was Weidle-Winkelmann who set the early pace, charging down the course and skiing into the lead nearly a second faster than American Keely Cashman, who had briefly held the top spot. The German's blistering effort looked untouchable for a spell, with Saturday's downhill winner Laura Pirovano and others unable to come close.

Weidle-Winkelmann's skiing in Kvitfjell stood out not just for results, but for the confidence and clarity in her approach. Her turns were clean and well-shaped, with a strong arc on the outside ski that allowed her to maintain flow throughout, and a great line into the bottom section sealed the performance.

"It was a good run for me," Weidle-Winkelmann said. "We knew that the surface is not too hard, with spring snow and wet conditions." Her third-place finish — her second podium in as many days — capped what has been the finest season of her career.

The closest challenge to Goggia came from Switzerland's Suter. Starting with bib 19, she held the green light through all four sectors but lost time on the bottom section, finishing 0.32 seconds behind the Italian. It was a narrow miss for the Swiss, but a fourth podium of the season and further evidence of a remarkable resurgence following her return from injury.

Before attacking the final schuss, Suter had actually held an advantage of 0.24 seconds over Goggia, but a slight line error in the closing metres cost her more than half a second — the difference between glory and the silver position.

"After yesterday I was a little bit disappointed because I made a small mistake, so I tried to ski as fast as I can today," Suter said. "I watched Kira and she was skiing so, so well, so I tried to do the same." 

The champagne also flowed for Goggia as part of the latest chapter in Italian women's Alpine skiing's extraordinary period. On the back of Federica Brignone's double Olympic gold and Laura Pirovano winning the downhill globe on Saturday, Goggia's Super G triumph made it an unprecedented weekend for the Azzurre.

Goggia ended the Super G season with 549 points, well clear of Robinson's 386 and Emma Aicher's 354. Her 29th World Cup win overall and tenth in the Super G discipline, it was perhaps her most meaningful — the completion of a speed double that had seemed tantalisingly out of reach for so long.

Shiffrin skied only her third World Cup Super G since December 2023 on Sunday, but finished 22nd, resulting in her Overall lead over Aicher being reduced to 45 points with two races remaining — a slalom and a giant slalom.

"I try to not think about it," Aicher said about the chase for the big globe. "I'm going to focus on my skiing and we'll see what happens."

Italy had arrived in Norway hoping. They left having swept both speed globes on consecutive days. Not even the most optimistic Italian fan could have scripted it better.