First run in Kitzbühel: A Swiss skier leads

After the first run of the slalom in Kitzbühel, a Swiss skier is the man to beat. For the South Tyroleans, however, the trip to North Tyrol was unsuccessful.

25 January 2026

From: do

The Kitzbühel legend continued on Sunday with the traditional slalom race. While the speed specialists thrilled fans in North Tyrol on Friday and Saturday, this time it was the turn of the technical skiers to take to one of the greatest arenas in skiing. In front of thousands of spectators, the best slalom skiers hurtled down the undulating Ganslern slope – and the fastest after the first run was once again a Swiss skier.

After Marco Odermatt's triumph in the Super-G, Loïc Meillard kept the red flag with the white cross flying high in the slalom. Starting with bib number 1, he set a benchmark time in the Kitzbühel snow that none of his competitors could beat. The closest the Swiss skier came this time was the rising star of Finland, Eduard Hallberg, who finished second, 0,35 seconds behind. Henrik Kristoffersen lurked behind (+0,47), while Manuel Feller, 0,48 seconds back, could still harbor hopes of his first victory in Kitzbühel.

Alex Vinatzer was eliminated. © APA/afp / JOE KLAMAR

Alex Vinatzer had a disastrous run from the start, losing significant ground at every split. His hopes of qualifying for the second run were dashed when he straddled a gate two gates from the finish and was eliminated. Tobias Kastlunger finished, but his 3,28-second deficit wasn't enough to qualify for the second run. The same was true for Matteo Canins (+2,56 seconds).