Olympics Women’s Downhill: Goggia wins gold, Vonn takes bronze

World Cup leader Sofia Goggia claimed gold in the women’s downhill. The Italian blazed the bottom half of the course to finish atop the podium.

The downhill is one of the classic tests of skiing. As skiers hit speeds that top 80 miles per hour, they must also stay upright and stay on course. Each course is its own beast, with curves and undulations that test not only technique but mettle.

The women tackled the course at Jeongseon Alpine Centre to vie for Olympic gold, and the final result lined up mostly to chalk. And the one wrinkle thrown into the podium mix was hardly a surprise on the level of Ester Ledecka in the Super-G.

Sofia Goggia entered the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang with a narrow lead on Lindsey Vonn in the FIS World Cup downhill standings. The Italian star could still lose her hold on the World Cup title in the downhill when the season wraps up after the Olympics, but Goggia capped her season with the winning run on the world’s biggest stage.

MEDAL RESULT | Alpine skiing women's downhill

Sofia Goggia

Ragnhild Mowinckel

Lindsey Vonn

Goggia gradually built up speed, getting out of the start just 26th fastest. By the time she hit the third checkpoint, the Italian had improved to the fifth fastest time. It was on the bottom half of the course that Goggia won the Olympic title. After skiing so early, she was then forced to wait as 34 other women tried to break her hold on gold.

Lindsey Vonn, skiing for the United States again, was the only skier to come within a half-second of Goggia’s time. An MCL sprain suffered on the World Cup course at Val d’Isere in early 2014 kept Vonn out of the Sochi Olympics, and she looked determined to get back on the podium.

The American left the gate two skiers after the Italian, but she remained in silver position to mirror the current World Cup standings. Tina Weirather of Liechtenstein, third in the World Cup standings, had a grip on bronze.

Then Ragnhild Mowinckel, skiing 19th, bombed down the downhill course

Mowinckel captured yet another medal for Norway in a Winter Olympics they have dominated. Though she is just eighth in the World Cup standings, Mowinckel captured the silver in the giant slalom a few days prior and looked comfortable on the South Korean slopes.

By the end of the run, Mowinckel had secured her grip on a second silver medal. Like Goggia, she was aggressive on the bottom half of the course. It paid off, as she pushed Weirather off the podium and relegated Vonn to bronze.

It was a fun finish that capped a youth movement in Alpine skiing this year. Mowinckel and Goggia, both 25, should battle again when the Winter Olympics return to Asia for Beijing 2022. Vonn, however, raced her swan song in the Olympic women’s downhill.

Next: The biggest upset in Alpine skiing history

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