Pinturault vs. Odermatt: the Alpine Skiing World Cup clash you don’t want to miss

Here we go again!

After a suspenseful 2020/21 season that ended up with three-time Olympic medallist Alexis Pinturault taking the spoils, the 2021/22 FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup is back on 23-24 October in Sölden, Austria, with the giant slalom event.

In February 2022, the 23-year-old Swiss skier Marco Odermatt will grace the Olympics for the first time in his career. He will be hoping to shine in an event where he finished last season second only to Pinturault, who also won his first big crystal globe - the first time a male French skier had done so since Luc Alphand in 1996/97.

So, on the eve of a new promising season and less than four months before the start of Beijing 2022, Olympics.com introduces you to a first-class rivalry that should keep you on your toes all winter long.

Who are they?

Alexis Pinturault

• Born: 20 March 1991 (30)
• Home town: Moûtiers (Savoie), France
• Club: CS Courchevel

Olympics record:

• Sochi 2014: 1 bronze (Giant Slalom)
• PyeongChang 2018: 1 silver (Combined), 1 bronze (Giant Slalom)

World Championships record:

• 2015: 1 bronze (Giant Slalom)
• 2017: 1 gold (Team)
• 2019: 1 gold (Combined), 1 bronze (Giant Slalom)
• 2021: 1 silver (Combined), 1 bronze (Super-G)

World Cup record:

• 1 big crystal globe 2021
• 5 small globes: 2021 (Giant Slalom), 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020 (Combined)

2020/21 World Cup:

• Points: 1260
• Wins: 5 (Parallel Slalom in Lech/Zürs, Giant Slalom in Alta Badia, 2 x Giant Slalom in Adelboden, Giant Slalom in Lenzerheide)
• Podiums: 9 (3rd Slalom in Flachau, 3rd Slalom in Schladming, 3rd Giant Slalom in Bansko, 3rd Slalom in Lenzerheide)

Marco Odermatt

• Born: 8 October 1997 (24)
• Home town: Buochs (Nidwald), Suisse
• Club: SC Veysonnaz Mont-Rouge

Junior World Championships record:

• 2016: 1 gold (Giant Slalom), 1 bronze (Super-G)
• 2018: 5 gold (Downhill, Super-G, Giant Slalom, Combined, Team)

World Cup record:

• Overall silver medallist in 2021
• Giant Slalom silver medallist in 2021
• Super-G silver medallist in 2021

2020/21 World Cup record:

• Points: 1093
• Wins: 3 (Giant Slalom in Santa Caterina, Super-G in Saalbach-Hinterglemm, Giant Slalom in Kranjska Gora)
• Podiums: 9 (2nd Giant Slalom in Sölden, 3rd Giant Slalom in Santa Caterina, 3rd Giant Slalom in Adelboden, 2nd Super-G in Kitzbühel, 3rd Super-G in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 2nd Giant Slalom in Bansko)

What happened in the 2020/21 season?

Odermatt had already made headlines in 2019/20 when he took his first career win at the FIS World Cup in December 2019. He went on to win gold in the Super-G at Beaver Creek (USA) before finishing second in Naeba (Japan) in February 2020. Pinturault, for his part, entered the 2020/21 season aiming to build on a successful 2019/20 where he finished second behind Norwegian champion Aleksander Aamodt Kilde.

In the 35 World Cup stages that took place in 2020/21, each athlete stepped onto the podium nine times. Odermatt took three wins – two in the Giant Slalom and one in the Super-G event – while Pinturault managed five – four in the Giant Slalom event and one in the Parallel Slalom.

It was indeed the Giant Slalom where the rivalry sparked into life, especially after 2019/20 big crystal globe winner Aamodt Kilde was injured in January 2021. The title seemed to have Pinturault's name written all over it.

A fascinating finish

Odermatt, however, was determined to make Pinturault’s life difficult. The Swiss skier climbed the standings on the back of a February World Championships where Pinturault failed to live up to expectations. 

Odermatt won the Super-G event at Saalbach-Hinterglemm (Austria) on 7 March 2021 and also finished first in the Giant Slalom event in Kranjska Gora (Slovenia). Following those two stages, Odermatt found himself 25 points ahead in the Giant Slalom standings and just 31 points behind Pinturault in the overall standings, with both small and big globes within his reach.

Everything would come down to the final two stages of the season. 

In the end, Pinturault needed just one more stage to put the result beyond doubt, a feat he achieved in Lenzerheide, on Odermatt’s turf. With the Super-G race cancelled due to bad weather, Odermatt was unable to score any points in the specialty. 

And on 20 March 2021, on the same day as his birthday, Pinturault won the Giant Slalom race with his Swiss rival finishing 11th, to take home his first big crystal globe.  

After such an incredible finale, will the two continue where they left off when they compete in the 2021/22 season and the Beijing 2022 Olympic Games?

In their own words

Odermatt on Pinturault's 2020/21 season

“Alexis Pinturault was obviously too strong and I wasn’t. The best man won and he deserves both globes.” – RTS

“I can learn from Alexis, from his dominance. He is always thinking about skiing. He finds a solution to every struggle.” – Ouest-France

Pinturault on his own 2020/21 season

“After Chamonix (when he was 317 points ahead of Marco Odermatt), everybody thought that the race was over. Maybe I thought so too, even though I know that it’s never over until it’s over in the world of sport. After that, I felt pressure like I had never felt before. I felt it grow and grow bigger until Kranjska Gora.” – L’Équipe