Battlelines drawn as Odermatt takes on world in men’s GS season starter
Oct 22, 2025·Alpine SkiingCan anyone stop Marco Odermatt (SUI/Stöckli)? The bare numbers would appear to suggest not. Especially in Giant Slalom. Afterall, the Swiss king has claimed a remarkable 24 of the past 37 Audi FIS World Cup GS races.
But from pioneering Brazilian Lucas Pinheiro Braathen (Atomic) to the effervescent trio of Attacking Vikings; Henrik Kristoffersen (NOR/Van Deer), Atle Lie McGrath (NOR/Head) and Timon Haugan (NOR/Van Deer) via the recently crowned GS world champion Raphael Haaser (AUT/Atomic) not to mention Odermatt’s own teammates, Loic Meillard (Rossignol) and Thomas Tumler (Stöckli) there is a growing list of top class challengers ready to rip up the rulebook when the new season begins on Sunday, 26 October at 10:00 CET in Sölden, Austria.
Attack of the Vikings
The Norwegians were quick to pounce when Odermatt let his remarkable standards slip last season, and the Attacking Vikings will no doubt be keen on grabbing another fast start this time around.
They will sadly be missing the injured Alexander Steen Olsen (Rossignol), who led home a Norwegian podium-sweep 12 months ago. But in the indefatigable Kristoffersen they have a priceless team leader. The 31-year-old followed up a first GS World Cup win in three years in Kranjska Gora in March with the Slalom Globe, secured in style at the World Cup Finals. Add on a likely boost from his recent marriage and Odermatt will know he has a serious rival on his hands.
In the ever-improving Haugan – three top-10s in his final six GS races of last season – and McGrath – third behind Kristoffersen in Sölden a year ago – Kristoffersen has fine teammates too.
Meillard poses in-house threat
At times it was the Norway v Switzerland show in men’s GS last season, with the two nations sharing 20 of the 36 World Cup medals on offer (eight for Norwegians and 12 for the Swiss). And two men in particular will be keen to continue to show that Odermatt is not the only racer in red.
Meillard might just be the most in-form male skier right now. Check this out for a way to finish a season: three wins in his final six World Cup races, including two in GS, plus two golds (Slalom and Team Combined) and a bronze in GS at the Saalbach 2025 World Championships.
No wonder Odermatt picked him last season as the man most likely to challenge him for the Overall title. While Meillard’s slow start made that too far out of reach, perhaps this is the season the 28-year-old will finally grab his first Globe?
Teammate Tumler knows just what it is like to peak late. The 35-year-old waited until his 124th World Cup start to grab a first ever win, triumphing in the Beaver Creek GS last season. He followed it up with world championship silver in the GS, a race in which Odermatt could only finish fourth.
Haaser carries home hopes
World champion Haaser is another out to show that he can add consistency to an undoubted ability to rise to the biggest of occasions. Despite having never won a World Cup race, the Austrian is now the proud owner of a full set of world championship medals – GS gold and Super G silver from Saalbach 2025 and Alpine combined bronze from Courchevel Meribel 2023.
Could he be the man to snatch a first home crowd triumph in Sölden since the great Marcel Hirscher (Van Deer) sent the masses wild in 2014?
“It’s an amazing feeling, I am happy about my last season but already looking forward to the next one,” Haaser said, before admitting he is not entirely sure what fuelled his late surge last season: “Hard to say? Maybe the long break without skiing from the middle of December to end of January?”
Teammates Marco Schwarz (Atomic) Patrick Feurstein (Rossignol) and Stefan Brennsteiner (Fischer) will be hoping it is them who can end the Austrian drought.
Brazil look to Pinheiro Braathen
The green, yellow and blue of Brazil have yet to be seen at the top of a World Cup podium, but surely it cannot be long now. Pinheiro Braathen, the World Cup Slalom champion in 2023, looked better and better as last season progressed, twice missing out on that elusive top spot by less than half-a-second.
Now preparing to launch what he happily calls the “biggest season of my career”, the 25-year-old cannot wait to get started.
Yet…history beckons for Odi
Despite all of this however, Odermatt undoubtedly remains the man to beat. The reigning Olympic GS champion is going for his fifth consecutive GS Globe, a feat that would tie him with Ted Ligety (USA) on the all-time list, behind only Hirscher (six) and Swedish icon Ingemar Stenmark (seven).
Odermatt also has Hirscher in his sights on the all-time GS World Cup wins list. Six more victories will push him past the man hoping to make a comeback from injury soon.
Asked recently to number the top-10 male skiers in history, Odermatt modestly put himself fifth. Should the coming season look like the last few, he might have to soon recalibrate that list.