Odermatt finally wins in Gardena as he dominates a World Cup downhill

SELVA DI VAL GARDENA, Italy (AP) — Marco Odermatt finally conquered the Saslong.

The three-time overall World Cup champion dominated on Saturday to win a downhill in Val Gardena, beating Swiss teammate Franjo von Allmen by 0.45 seconds.

It was Odermatt’s first victory at the resort in the Italian Dolomites. The 27-year-old had had four podium finishes there — including in Saturday’s super-G — but had never been better than second.

It had also been a less than stellar start to the season for Odermatt — by his lofty standards — and the Swiss standout yelled out in joy several times after crossing the line, before taking off his skis and raising them up and letting out another long yell.

Before Odermatt came down it had been an incredibly tight race, with the top three separated by just 0.02. In the end, American skier Ryan Cochran-Siegle finished third, with Nils Allègre of France missing out on what would have been only his second ever podium finish by one hundredth of a second.

It was Odermatt’s 40th World Cup victory but only his third in downhill.

Odermatt won the downhill World Cup title last season, as well as the super-G, giant slalom and overall crystal globes.

The only previous downhill this season was in Beaver Creek, where Odermatt finished second to teammate Justin Murisier.

Odermatt moved 60 points above Murisier in the downhill standings and 50 points above Henrik Kristoffersen in the overall.

The circuit moves to nearby Alta Badia where there is a giant slalom on Sunday and a slalom the following day.

Meanwhile, Lindsey Vonn finished 14th in a super-G in St. Moritz, Switzerland to mark her return to World Cup skiing at age 40. Her comeback continues in a super-G in St. Moritz on Sunday.