Sofia Goggia wins the Beaver Creek Super-G: a victory that smacks of redemption VIDEO

After a long injury, the Italian skier returns to victory in the World Cup, showing determination and talent

Sofia Goggia returned to victory in the World Cup. The Italian triumphed today, 15 December, in the Super-G in Beaver Creek, after finishing second in the downhill the previous day on the slopes of Colorado. This success comes 313 days after the injury that had kept her off the slopes due to a fractured tibia and malleolus. Goggia finished with a time of 1.03.90, beating Switzerland’s Lara Gut-Behrami by 0.48 seconds and Austria’s Ariane Raedler by 0.55 seconds.

A clear victory over Birds of Prey

The champion from Bergamo dominated on the Birds of Prey slope in Beaver Creek, edging out the competition and returning to World Cup glory. Goggia’s last victory dated back to the downhill in Altenmarkt on 13 January. This triumph marks her 25th victory on the circuit and demonstrates once again her ability to overcome bad luck and difficult moments.

Performances by the other Italians

The day was also positive for other Italian athletes. Federica Brignone took fifth place, just nine hundredths off the podium, followed by Marta Bassino in sixth. Elena Curtoni achieved ninth place, while Roberta Melesi came eleventh. Laura Pirovano finished in eighteenth place, followed by Vicky Bernardi in 23rd. Sisters Nicol and Nadia Delago dropped out of the race, with the latter suffering a bad fall that fortunately did not cause her any physical damage.

The words of Sofia Goggia

‘I am very happy with this performance. Compared to the downhill, I was able to ski better, putting a combination of competitive nastiness, technique and a lot of instinct on the piste,’ said Goggia after the victory. ‘I am grateful to be back competing in the World Cup. It was a tough challenge in the past months, but now I am here and I don’t think about the injury anymore.’

Goggia added: ‘This morning I woke up very joyful and I said to myself, “If I get to the finish line with a green light, I will do a Braathen dance.” The problem is that I’m not Brazilian, but Italian and from Bergamo, and the only thing I’m good at is making polenta.’