A wild dog: Giovanni Franzoni won the downhill in Kitzbühel. © APA/afp / JOE KLAMAR

At 24: Giovanni Franzoni triumphs on the Streif

Italy's men's ski team put on a strong showing at the world's most famous downhill race in Kitzbühel. While the very young Giovanni Franzoni even took the victory, South Tyrolean Florian Schieder narrowly missed the podium.

24 January 2026

From: dl

For a long time, it looked as if Florian Schieder would stand on a World Cup podium for the fourth time overall on Saturday – and for the third time in the legendary Kitzbühel downhill. After two second-place finishes in 2023 and 2024, the skier from Kastelruth had been in third place for a considerable period.

Starting with bib number 6, Schieder was only beaten by Franzoni at one point. The 30-year-old finished 67 hundredths of a second behind the outstanding Italian. But besides Marco Odermatt, there was someone even faster: surprise contender Maxence Muzaton overtook Schieder, who was wearing the high bib number 29.

Florian Schieder narrowly missed the podium, finishing fourth. © APA / HANS KLAUS TECHT

Muzaton had only stood on the podium once before – back in 2017 in the combined event in Wengen. In the downhill, the 35-year-old had never finished higher than fifth. Like Schieder, the Frenchman is considered a Kitzbühel specialist and can now celebrate his first podium finish.

Franzoni beats Odermatt

The battle for victory was a clash of titans between the rising star of skiing, Giovanni Franzoni, and superstar Marco Odermatt. In the end, the young man from Manerba on Lake Garda edged ahead by seven hundredths of a second. In only his second Kitzbühel downhill race, Franzoni secured the win. This is his second World Cup victory overall, following his Super-G win in Wengen eight days earlier. Franzoni is the fourth Italian to win the downhill on the Streif course, after Dominik Paris (2013, 2017, 2019), Peter Fill (2016), and Kristian Ghedina (1998).

Giovanni Franzoni (center) won the downhill in Kitzbühel – in only his second race. © ANSA / ANNA SZILAGYI

Franzoni had only just stood on the podium for the first time in Val Gardena in December. Now, at just 24 years old, he can already call himself a Kitzbühel winner. Franzoni's victory also prevented Odermatt from securing his first downhill win, meaning Odermatt must continue to wait for his long-awaited triumph. The two-time Super-G winner has now reached the downhill podium on the Streif for the fourth time. In Italy, a Franzoni hype is sure to erupt now, just before the Olympic Games in Bormio.

Azzurri are incredibly strong

Dominik Paris (7th) and Mattia Casse (11th) rounded off an excellent result for the Italians – meaning four of them finished in the top 11. Christof Innerhofer had to settle for 28rd place on Saturday. The Hahnenkamm weekend in Kitzbühel concludes on Sunday (10:30/13:30) with the slalom on the Ganslern slope.