Ganong Eighth in World Championships Super-G
Travis Ganong led the Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team men in the first race at the 2021 FIS World Ski Championships, taking eighth place in the super-G.
Battling a tricky set that took down 21 skiers throughout the day, Vincent Kriechmayr of Austria looked unrattled to secure his first World Championships gold medal. Coming into the race, Kriechmayr was the most decorated skier on the World Cup circuit without a major title. Veteran Romed Baumann of Germany—who hadn’t been on a super-G podium in a decade and previously raced for Austria before being cut from their team—was second, and World Cup overall leader Alexis Pinturault of France took bronze.
Ganong, who has a silver medal in super-G from the 2015 World Championships in Beaver Creek, Colorado, is no stranger to the pressure that comes from a large event like this. And seeing the first three men DNF, he had to quickly change his plan to secure a top spot.
“During inspection, it seemed kind of easy,” he said. “And then watching the first couple of guys go out, I totally had to change my plan because the course was really challenging. That little chute on the top was very difficult to manage and you had to be really tactical.”
Ganong skied strategically into fifth place and ended up in eighth overall. It’s his best super-G result since snagging fourth in Val d’Isere in December. “I’m really happy with my run,” he said. “My skiing was good. It’s close; it’s so close. It’s a beautiful sunny day and you can’t be mad about that.”
Behind Travis, Jared Goldberg snagged 15th place—his career-best super-G result. Bryce Bennett was 27th.
Notably missing from the 2021 World Championships are the fans, which, due to COVID restrictions to maintain the athletes’ health and safety, are banned from the venue. But with Cortina scheduled to host the Olympics in 2026, the skiers can picture what the venue will look like hosting another worldwide event in the future. “In a normal circumstance without COVID, this place would be absolutely packed full of people and it would be a big party,” said Ganong. “I think it’d be really fun, a big celebration of skiing. It’s a beautiful place. It’s one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever skied and is a perfect setting for a big event like this. Hopefully, with the Olympics coming back here, we’ll be able to have fans and be able to all celebrate sports together in the mountains. Too bad we can’t have them this year but the show must go on. It’s nice that we’re able to race still and compete during these times—we’re very fortunate.”
Next up at World Championships, the men run downhill training before racing the downhill on Sunday, followed by the alpine combined on Monday.
RESULTS
Men’s World Championships super-G
HOW TO WATCH
All times EST
Thursday, Feb. 11
5:00 p.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Women's Super-G - same-day broadcast, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN
Saturday, Feb. 13
5:00 a.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Women's Downhill - LIVE, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast Olympic Chanel
2:30 p.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Women's Downhill - same-day broadcast, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast NBC
4:30 p.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Women's Downhill - same-day broadcast, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN
Sunday, Feb. 14
5:00 a.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Men's Downhill - LIVE, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Streaming Peacock
5:00 a.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Men's Downhill - LIVE, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast Olympic Channel
12:00 p.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Men's Downhill - same-day broadcast, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast NBC
4:30 p.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Men's Downhill - same-day broadcast, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN
