Scheib Stuns in Åre Giant Slalom, Takes GS Globe, Men’s Super G in Courchevel, France cancelled

Julia Scheib (AUS/Rossignol) put in a superb performance to win at Åre and claim the Audi FIS World Cup Giant Slalom Crystal Globe on Saturday – after her closest challenger Camille Rast (SUI/Head) DNFed during a breathless race.

Saturday's Women's Giant Slalom Results (Åre):

1. Julia Scheib (AUT) - 2:08.45

2. Paula Moltzan (USA) - +0.31

3. Alice Robinson (NZL) - +0.58

4. Mina Fürst Holtmann (NOR) - +0.72

5. Thea Louise Stjernesund (NOR) - +0.85

6. Sara Hector (SWE) - +0.91

GS World Cup Standings (after Åre):

1. Alice Robinson (NZL) - 485 points

2. Sara Hector (SWE) - 461

3. Marta Bassino (ITA) - 398

4. Lara Gut-Behrami (SUI) - 356

5. Julia Scheib (AUT) - 342

The Austrian skied with poise and precision to finish 0.31 seconds ahead of American Paula Moltzan, with New Zealand's Alice Robinson claiming third, 0.58 seconds off the winning pace.

Speaking after a gruelling race, Giant Slalom champion Scheib said: "It means a lot, because the last year has not been easy, I am so grateful.

"You feel pressure, especially in a race like this, but you try to block out the outside noise and just focus on the skiing.

Highlighting the challenge of the second run, she said: "It was a fight from the first gate to the last. I couldn't breathe in the finish area."

On winning the Crystal Globe, she added: "It means a lot because it has been a dream of mine for many years so to achieve this is very special."

Reflecting on the race, Paula Moltzan said: "I thought I executed the first run well, which you need for things to come together.

"The second run was a little bit loose and scrappy but I am happy."

She added: "Julia is a really good friend of mine, so I am really happy for her. In Copper Mountain, when she DNFed, she was so down, so I am really proud of her."

Alice Robertson was also content. "It was good, it was pretty tough. though," she said. "The second run definitely felt pretty wild because of the conditions.

"I am really happy, because GS has been really up and down for me this year."

On Scheib's victory, she added: "She has been on point in pretty much every race. I am really happy for her, she is a well deserved winner."

Scheib's victory comes at a critical moment in the season, with just one GS race remaining before the World Cup Finals. Her 100-point haul vaults her into the top five in the giant slalom standings and keeps mathematical hopes alive for a podium finish in the discipline rankings.

But the day's other major story was Moltzan's runner-up finish — a career-best result in giant slalom for the American who has built her reputation primarily as a slalom specialist. The 30-year-old from Vermont delivered an aggressive second run that nearly caught Scheib, thrilling the small contingent of U.S. ski fans who made the trip to Sweden.

"This is huge for me," Moltzan said. "I've always believed I could ski GS at this level, but the results haven't shown it. To prove it here, on one of the toughest courses on the circuit — it validates all the work I've put in on my technical skiing."

Moltzan's podium is only her second in giant slalom at the World Cup level and her first since 2021. The result moves her into the top 15 in the GS standings and could earn her additional starting quota spots for next season.

Robinson, meanwhile, delivered a consistent performance to claim her third GS podium of the season, though the Kiwi appeared disappointed after narrowly missing out on second place.

"I had the speed, but I made a few small mistakes in the second run that cost me," Robinson said. "Still, a podium is a podium, and it keeps me in the fight for the discipline title."

The race took place in ideal conditions on Åre's storied Olympia slope, which last hosted World Championships in 2019. The challenging course, featuring technical turns on the upper section and a steep, icy pitch through the bottom, proved to be a great equalizer, with several pre-race favorites failing to finish or skiing out in the first run.

Most notably absent from the podium was overall World Cup leader Federica Brignone, who straddled a gate in the opening run. The Italian's DNF opens the door slightly in the battle for the overall title, though she maintains a commanding lead with just three races remaining.

Sweden's Sara Hector, racing on home snow, finished a disappointing sixth after leading at the first interval in run two, while Switzerland's Lara Gut-Behrami could manage only ninth place, continuing her struggles in giant slalom this season.

The women's circuit now heads to next weekend's World Cup Finals in Saalbach-Hinterglemm, Austria, where the final GS race of the season will determine the discipline champion. Robinson currently leads the standings with 485 points, followed by Sweden's Hector at 461. Scheib's victory moves her to 342 points in fifth place.

Sunday's slalom in Åre will provide another opportunity for Moltzan to shine in her preferred discipline, where she sits eighth in the season standings.

Meanwhile, the men’s Super G in Courchevel, France was cancelled on Saturday due to heavy snow and fog, edging Marco Odermatt (SUI/Stöckli) closer to a fourth consecutive Super G Crystal Globe.

With just two Super G races now left in the season and a maximum of 100 points available to the winner of each, Vincent Kriechmayr (AUT/Head) needs everything to go his way to have a chance of catching the Swiss star.

Odermatt will line-up for Sunday’s Super G in Courchevel with a 158-point lead in the standings over the second-placed Austrian, meaning he will have a great chance to add the Super G Globe to the Overall and Downhill titles he won in the French resort on Friday.