Schieder and Co. are fascinated: "A five-lane highway"

The gladiators of alpine skiing came dangerously close to a magical milestone on Wednesday. Florian Schieder and his teammates were thrilled with the conditions on the Streif in Kitzbühel.

21 January 2026

From Kitzbühel

From:
Christoph Niederkofler

Giovanni Franzoni dazzled in the second downhill training run at the Kitzbühel World Cup with a time of 1:52.21 minutes. in first placeAs on the previous day, the 24-year-old Italian was unstoppable and is now aiming for a repeat of his remarkable feat. After all, Franzoni also won both training sessions in Wengen a week ago and ultimately celebrated his very first World Cup victory in the Super-G. The omens are good.

They are doing so also with another milestone in mind. In 1997, Fritz Strobl seemingly set a record for eternity on the Streif with a time of 1:51.58 minutes. However, since Wednesday, this 29-year-old record has been crumbling considerably. But there's a simple reason for that.

Schieder: "Everyone dares to go on a motorway."

The course conditions in Kitzbühel were once again superb, and in perfect weather, the athletes hinted at what was possible. Considering that no one reveals their hand in training, the 0,63-second difference to Strobl's best time is practically less than the blink of an eye. "A highway, a five-lane highway," Florian Schieder said, finding a fitting metaphor for the fast-paced Streif. "And on a highway, everyone dares to go fast. Normally, you only crouch down after the final jump, but this year, crouching is the norm."

"I nailed the key passages. That makes me confident." Florian Schieder

The 30-year-old from Kastelruth finished eighth in the second training run (+0,72). "I nailed the key sections," he said, assessing his run. "That makes me optimistic." Besides Franzoni, three teammates were faster: Christof Innerhofer (4th/+0,39) and Mattia Casse (6th/+0,51).

Innerhofer finds this Streif simply brilliant

For years, Innerhofer has consistently been among the frontrunners in Kitzbühel training, and in the last seven Streif trials, he has always finished at least seventh. "I admit that I went full throttle from the Lärchenschuss section all the way to the finish. On Tuesday, it was the other way around," said the 41-year-old. "The slope practically begs you to attack; it's so fantastic to ski."

Christof Innerhofer was once again among the top people. © APA / EXPA/ JOHANN GRODER

For the second time in his still young career, Max Perathoner ventured onto the Streif. Three days after his birthday, the 23-year-old from Val Gardena finished in 54th place (+3,85). "Since I crossed the finish line yesterday, I've had a grin from ear to ear," he said of his first experience on the notorious course. "Today I tried to push harder. It's not enough for the top spots yet, but it doesn't have to be. I'm working my way there slowly but surely. It was a great birthday present."

The action continues in Kitzbühel on Friday with the Super-G, followed by the downhill race the next day (both starting at 11:30 am). SportNews(Live ticker). The World Cup will finally conclude with the slalom on the Ganslern slope (10:30/13:30).