Giovanni Franzoni pointed it out. © Pentaphoto

Italy's rising star is also making waves in Garmisch

After the Olympic magic, the World Cup circuit returns to its routine. A speed weekend awaits the men in Garmisch, and a familiar face made an appearance in the first training run.

February 26, 2026

From: det

Giovanni Franzoni is in the form of his life. In January, the rising star from Lake Garda triumphed in Wengen and Kitzbühel, he snagged the silver medal in the downhill at the Olympics, and now the 24-year-old has proven in Garmisch that he's far from finished. Franzoni set the fastest time in the first training run on Thursday.

The Italian skier left a surprise contender behind: Felix Monsen, the only Swedish downhill skier, finished second behind Franzoni, starting with the high bib number 38. Only 26 hundredths of a second separated the two. Third place went to American Ryan Cochran-Siegle (+0,60 seconds). Mattia Casse finished fourth, 0,64 seconds behind.

Giovanni Franzoni, new star from Italy. © APA/afp / FABRICE COFFRINI

And the big stars? They took it easy. Marco Odermatt posted the 16th fastest time, while three-time Olympic champion Franjo von Allmen only managed 41st place. The two South Tyroleans, Christof Innerhofer (22nd/+1,54 seconds) and Florian Schieder (23rd/+1,58 seconds), finished outside the top 20, while Dominik Paris accumulated a deficit of 13 seconds.

Another test run is scheduled for Friday before things get serious at the weekend. The downhill race takes place on Saturday (11:45 a.m.), followed by the Super-G on Sunday (11:45 a.m.).