Odermatt wins World Cup giant slalom for record 5th straight win at Adelboden

Swiss ski star Marco Odermatt is often unbeatable in the World Cup and especially at his home giant slalom classic in Adelboden, Switzerland, that he won for a record fifth straight year Saturday.

Olympic giant slalom champion Odermatt raced through steady falling snow and worsening visibility to protect his first-run lead and win by 0.49 seconds from Lucas Pinheiro Braathen of Brazil. Leo Anguenot of France was third, 0.68 back.

Pinheiro Braathen led the applause in the finish area after watching Odermatt ski at his limit to exactly match the Brazilian's time in the tough second run.

"He is really the king of this hill," Pinheiro Braathen said of Odermatt to Swiss broadcaster RTS. "It is an honor to be able to stand as the last man up at the start gate with him and be able to fight him on arguably the coolest race that you guys have to offer."

Odermatt has won each Adelboden giant slalom since 2022 to overtake the four-win streak of Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark from 1979 through 1982.

Home wins at Adelboden are wildly appreciated by a noisy crowd of about 25,000 fans on a signature day in Switzerland's sports calendar.

"They really made me push harder," Odermatt said of the home support. "This energy, this extra pressure and motivation helps."

Racing began Saturday morning after a minute's silence observed for the victims of the fatal fire in a bar in nearby Crans-Montana, which hosts World Cup races in three weeks' time.

In another stellar World Cup season for Odermatt, the four-time defending overall champion has almost twice as many race points as his nearest challenger, Pinheiro Braathen.

Odermatt's sixth race win this season was the 51st of his career, fourth on the all-time list, and 29th in giant slalom.

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