Austria’s Vincent Kriechmayr Wins at Beaver Creek, CO, as Heavy Weather Cuts Super-G Short After 31 Racers
Friday’s Super-G podium at Beaver Creek: Vincent Kriechmayr (1st), Frederik Möller (2nd), and Raphael Haaser (3rd). | Image: FIS Alpine
What began as a promising, powder-covered race day on the Birds of Prey course in Beaver Creek, Colorado, turned into a battle against snowfall, visibility, and rising winds on Friday, December 5, ultimately forcing FIS officials to halt the men’s Super-G after many race interruptions and 31 racers. Despite the difficult conditions, the crowd witnessed a spectacular—if abbreviated—show, highlighted by a dominant performance from Austria’s Vincent Kriechmayr and an electrifying run from American River Radamus.
The morning opened with thick snowfall after Thursday’s bluebird weather, but the fresh snow didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of fans in the finish area. Canada’s James Crawford kicked off the Super-G with a 1:08.07, establishing the early benchmark. Italy’s Giovanni Franzoni missed it, but Austria’s Stefan Eichberger found just enough speed to edge Crawford by two hundredths of a second. Austria continued to apply pressure when Stefan Babinsky slotted in 0.16 seconds behind Eichberger, suggesting the 1:08 range might define the day.
That assumption lasted until Kriechmayr charged out of the gate as the sixth starter. His run was clinical and powerful. Kriechmayr built a half-second advantage on the upper section, navigated the soft, slowing snow in the Screeching Owl segment with remarkable precision, and crossed the line in 1:06.77—ultimately 1.26 seconds ahead of the early leaders. It was a return to form on familiar ground for the Austrian, who previously won on this course in 2017. “Of course, my skiing, I think, was pretty good. I mean, the race was pretty tough,” Kriechmayr said afterward, acknowledging that the conditions deteriorated quickly for those starting later. “I think the first 14 racers had similar conditions but after the break it wasn’t that fair anymore.”
Seventh starter Marco Odermatt, a three-time Birds of Prey Super-G winner and Thursday’s Downhill champion, fought hard but lacked his usual sharpness on the top section, losing a full second before the course opened up. His lower-section push brought him closer, but he still crossed 1.23 seconds behind Kriechmayr—only good enough for fifth place on the day.
Raphael Haaser delivered another strong day for Austria, finishing third and earning his second Super-G podium of the season. “The weather conditions were challenging… but it’s good for us to come here and I really enjoyed the race,” Haaser said, noting the advantage of having skied the track in Thursday’s Downhill.
Norway’s Fredrik Möller continued his rise in speed events, sliding into second place with a technically clean and composed run, albeit still nearly a second behind Kriechmayr. “It was challenging the whole way… even the flat was challenging,” he said of the conditions at Beaver Creek. Former World Champion Dominik Paris could not shake up the ranking but came close, finishing in fourth, 0.12 seconds behind Austria’s Haaser.
Further down the field, big names struggled. Aleksander Aamodt Kilde skied out intentionally after going too low on the top section, choosing not to risk injury just three races into his return following a long rehabilitation. Several racers—including 2025 Downhill World Champion Franjo von Allmen—registered DNFs amid poor visibility, bumpy terrain, and worsening snowfall.
River Radamus on course at the Birds of Prey Super-G at Beaver Creek | Dustin Satloff / U.S. Ski Team
While the podium was out of reach for most of the later starters, the hometown fans had plenty to cheer for. River Radamus produced the most thrilling American performance of the day, sitting less than half a second behind Kriechmayr after the upper section and delivering the fastest mid-section split from Brink into Talon Turn of any competitor. Radamus was pushing for a podium before a small mistake on the flat put his hip on the snow and bled away his speed. He still finished 12th—best among the Americans—and secured the Stifel Bibbo Award.
“If I have the nerve to really commit in those first four turns I’ll set the tone for myself the rest of the way. It was dark, it was bumpy but the conditions were still good enough that you could get some response. I felt like I was putting it on the line and then obviously I made a huge mistake. It’s frustrating. But I have to take the good with the bad and hopefully take some fast skiing into Sunday.”
— River Radamus
Ryan Cochran-Siegle followed closely behind his teammate in 13th, just 0.06 seconds back. He acknowledged a slow start on the Brink: “I think my execution was just off the mark… I gave up too much time at the top.” Jared Goldberg rounded out the American finishers in 25th. The other remaining five American starters had lower bib numbers and were cut off from competing when the race was canceled.
The combination of increasing snowfall, rising winds, and deteriorating visibility forced the jury to stop the race after Switzerland’s Loïc Meillard (bib 31) completed his run. Lucas Braathen (bib 32) and 34 others never got their chance, but with more than the required starters completed, Friday’s Super-G remained official.
The men now turn their attention to Sunday’s Giant Slalom, hoping for clearer skies—and a full race—from start to finish.
