Aicher wins Soldeu Super G to join the Crystal Globe chase

The biggest rising star of women's Alpine skiing just rose a little higher.

Emma Aicher (GER/Head) dominated the Soldeu Super G on Saturday with a stunning performance that signalled her intention to chase multiple Crystal Globes this season at 22 years of age.

The young allrounder blew away the field with a brilliant run down the Aliga course, triumphing well ahead of runner-up Alice Robinson (NZL/Salomon, +0.88s) and Friday's Downhill winner Corinne Suter (SUI/Head, +0.98s).

"I'm very happy, also really happy with my run," said Aicher, who recorded her second Super G win of the season and the third of her career.

"It's nice to see that my skiing is going in the right direction."

The right direction is an understatement. Coming off two Olympic silver medals at Milano Cortina 2026, Aicher now finds herself right in the thick of the Crystal Globe chase.

With the victory and 100-point score, she moved up from seventh into third place in the Super G standings with three races left, 96 points behind leader Sofia Goggia (ITA/Atomic).

Aicher also gained ground on Mikaela Shiffrin (USA/Atomic) in the Overall standings, closing to within 299 points with four speed races to come in the next eight days before the American is likely to race again.

Furthermore, Aicher sits second in the Downhill standings, behind only the injured Lindsey Vonn (USA/Head).

"You work your entire life to be there so it's nice to see that the work you put in is paying off and you can be at the top and fight for good positions," the German said.

Skiing with bib No.12, Aicher was fastest or second fastest in all four timed sectors of the course, setting the tone with the fastest first two splits on the top section to take a big lead over provisional leader Robinson.

Aicher lost some time against New Zealand's Giant Slalom specialist in the technical third sector, but retained the green light and extended it in the closeout.

"I think I managed to do pretty well in the flat at the top," she said. "I think the pitch was OK, but still fine."

Robinson, coming off a difficult middle part of the season that included eighth-place finishes in both her Olympic races, returned to her aggressive early-season form, taking the provisional lead with bib No.8.

She held her own on the top section, and then excelled on the steep, wide turns of the third sector, skiing it nearly 0.40 seconds faster than anyone else in the field to take the lead at the final intermediate split and hold onto it at the finish line.

"I knew that the top isn't my kind of course, it's very flat and glidey," Robinson said. "I'm really proud of myself to get the most out of the sections I knew I could ski fast, I think I executed the steep part really well."

It was the 24-year-old's first podium in any discipline since the Val d'Isère Super G before Christmas, a stretch that included two DNFs, a DNQ in Giant Slalom and four other results outside the top 10.

"Maybe today was finally this thing that's going to get my confidence back where it needs to be, so I'm really excited we've got another race tomorrow," she said.

One skier who has already got her confidence back this weekend is Suter.

Coming off her first World Cup win in over three years on Friday, the Swiss veteran took advantage of a clean, relatively cool track as the first skier to post a time that held up for her first Super G podium since January 2025.

"Very happy, especially today in the Super G," the 31-year-old said. "I wasn't so comfortable in Super G because you have to trust your instincts a lot more than in the Downhill, but I think I managed it pretty good for (bib) No.1 today."

On a course set by Italian coach Giovanni Feltrin, Italy's top contenders could not find the right rhythm, especially in the technical section.

Goggia found herself late in the line and fighting the turns, finishing sixth, while Olympic champion Federica Brignone (ITA/Rossignol) went very wide off the roller after the Circus turn and made errors all the way down the course to finish 15th.

Both Italian stars, and the rest of the field, will have a final crack at the Aliga course in Sunday's second Super G, as Suter goes for her third podium in three days.

"Tomorrow starts from zero and everyone wants to be fast," Suter said.

Click here for full results from Saturday's race and the updated Super G standings, and please head to Reuters Connect and Actionpress.de to view and purchase a wide selection of photographs from this race and from all FIS events.