[OLYMPICS] Swiss-Italian Duel in Men's Downhill on Bormio's Stelvio Slope - SnowBrains

"Austria's Hemetsberger, who had crashed just two days ago in training, had the honor of opening not only the men's downhill but also the first Olympic medal event. The Austrian ski racer stopped the clock at 1:52.58, setting a competitive benchmark for the day. Canada's James Crawford in bib 2 was 0.42 seconds slower, while Team USA's Bryce Bennet fell 0.87 behind the top time."

"That run marked the beginning of a dominant Swiss stretch. Marco Odermatt, starting in bib 7, surpassed his teammate by 0.05 seconds, before Franjo von Allmen delivered a fearless and commanding run to take the lead by a remarkable 0.70 seconds, creating a significant gap between first and second place. For a brief moment, the podium positions were occupied entirely by Swiss racers."

Men's downhill on the Stelvio course in Bormio took place Saturday, February 7, at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Austria's Hemetsberger opened the race after a recent training crash and set an early benchmark of 1:52.58. Canada's James Crawford was 0.42 seconds slower and Team USA's Bryce Bennet 0.87 seconds back. Switzerland produced a dominant stretch as Alexis Monney and Marco Odermatt moved ahead before Franjo von Allmen delivered a commanding run to lead by 0.70 seconds. Italy's Giovanni Franzoni and Dominik Paris moved onto the podium for silver and bronze. Team USA's Kyle Negomir finished tenth.

Read at SnowBrains