Giovanni Franzoni spectacularly avoided a fall. © ANSA / JEAN-CHRISTOPHE BOTT

Like Bode Miller before him: Franzoni drifts onto a safety net.

With his fabulous triumph on the Streif in Kitzbühel, Giovanni Franzoni joined the ranks of alpine skiing legends. A week later, he once again followed in the footsteps of an icon – by spectacularly preventing a fall.

31 January 2026

From: never

These are images that have become part of the collective memory in alpine skiing. When Bode Miller hurtled into the infamous Carousel during the downhill race in Kitzbühel in 2008, the centrifugal forces of the key section carried the American far out – right to the absolute limit. But instead of crashing into the safety barrier, Miller drifted along the edge of the course on his skis and continued his run. At the end of the day, only one athlete finished ahead of him; despite the crazy stunt, he celebrated second place behind Didier Cuche (+0,27 seconds). A memory for the ages.

Giovanni Franzoni caused quite a stir a week ago. The 24-year-old from Lake Garda sped phenomenally to victory in the downhill and snatched the Golden Chamois. Just seven days later, the headlines were once again about the Italian. This time, however, he was the protagonist of an incredible scare. During downhill training in Crans Montana, Franzoni, like Miller before him, was thrown wide in a right-hand turn. The rising star, however, demonstrated unparalleled balance, slid over the safety netting, and landed safely back on the course (see video below).

Franzoni remains completely calm after the shock.

In the final standings, Franzoni finished in 33rd place (+2,11 seconds). His teammate Mattia Casse secured the fastest time.“I managed to keep a clear head until the very end, even though I landed on the nets with my skis due to a mistake,” he reacted soberly afterwards to his run.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Audi FIS Ski World Cup (@fisalpine)

“I skied poorly here last year, but I’m learning to understand the course better. I did well in the sections where I didn’t make any mistakes, so I’m confident for tomorrow.” The men’s downhill race takes place in Switzerland on Sunday (starting at 11:00 a.m.). SportNewslive ticker).