2023-12-14 16:27:27
We believed it for a moment. Nils Allègre could have won the first podium of his career in the World Cup this Thursday in Val Gardena (Italy). With a very fair round and well-negotiated terrain movements, the skier from Serre Chevalier remained for a moment 10 hundredths behind the masterful Alexander Kilde, on the third step of the podium.
Until the surprise of the day, the American Bryce Bennett, bib 34 on his back, repeated the twist of two years ago. Coming from nowhere, the 31-year-old skier took the top step of the podium, inevitably pushing everyone back a notch, thus ejecting the Frenchman from the winning trio. The Californian signed his second victory on the world circuit on Thursday morning, two years after a first success on the same Italian track.
BENNETT STUN’S SOURCE AND ODERMATT! ????
Bryce Bennett earns his second World Cup win by just 0.03 seconds in Val Gardena!
Aleksander Aamodt Kilde and Marco Odermatt are left to settle for silver and bronze respectively????????#fisalpine pic.twitter.com/kLpVglxofD
— Eurosport (@eurosport) December 14, 2023
The podium in a pocket handkerchief
“My goal was to finish among the top thirty, or even aim for the top-15. I didn’t expect this result,” says a relaxed and laughing Bryce Bennett at Eurosport. In the shadows all last season, the American won against the favorites. “Today I really want to move forward, to show who I am. If I win the globe you will never hear from me again,” he quips.
His second victory on the circuit was decided by a few hundredths since the favorite Alexander Kilde, deprived of a fourth victory in the Dolomites resort, finished second by 3 hundredths. Marco Odermatt, who was racing to win his first downhill victory, finished third, 5 hundredths behind.
Matthieu Bailet 7th, Cyprien Sarrazin disqualified
The American’s victory therefore also leaves some disappointed on the blue side. The Frenchman Nils Allègre will have to be content with a 4th place, finishing 13 hundredths behind the big – 2m10 – winner. The tricolor downhiller equals his best result in the World Cup, in super-G in Garmisch-Partenkirchen (Germany) in February 2021.
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A solid start to this speed season for Nils Allegre who finished at the foot of the podium in the Val Gardena downhill ????????@bailet_matthieu is 7th ???????? Agence Zoom pic.twitter.com/XvRzZycviR
— FFS – French Ski Federation (@FedFranceSki) December 14, 2023
With 8 French people at the start, the French team leaves a good impression overall. For his return to the World Cup after a serious injury during training in Bormio (Italy) at the end of 2022, Matthieu Bailet achieved a correct seventh place. Maxence Muzaton finished 23rd, Brice Giezendanner 29th, Nils Alphand 53rd and Adrien Fresquet 57th. Cyprien Sarrazin, despite a very good start to the race followed by a big mistake, did not cross the finish line.
The Val Gardena stage continues on Friday with a super-G, and on Saturday a second descent, which will this time take place over the entirety of the formidable Saslong. “It’s going to be a complicated five days with these sequences,” confides world champion Marco Odermatt with a smile on his face despite his third place. I’m going to take the races one after the other and we’ll see.” The downhillers took their first start under the sun and a big blue sky, enough to boost their morale after the series of cancellations linked to bad weather conditions. Let’s hope it lasts.
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