2nd February 2023
PlanetSKI has arrived to look ahead to two weeks of competition that start on Monday. We also look at why resorts want to hold such events and what the legacy might be. NEW
Driving up the road to the host resorts the anticipation builds.
The road is adorned with posters, adverts and promotions.
2023 Alpine World Championships. Image © PlanetSKI
2023 Alpine World Championships. Image © PlanetSKI
The best skiers on the planet are coming to town and final preparations were underway with the finishing touches being put to the venues as PlanetSKI arrived in resort.
2023 Alpine World Championships. Image © PlanetSKI
2023 Alpine World Championships. Image © PlanetSKI
It’s the fourth time in history that the Alpine World Championships are being held in the French Alps :
- 1937 – Chamonix,
- 1962 – Chamonix
- 2009 – Val d’Isere
We’ll look later at what it means for the two resorts themselves, and the wider Les3Vallees ski area, to hold the prestigious event.
But first the sporting competition itself.
2023 Alpine World Championships. Image © PlanetSKI
Les Menuires. Image © Chris Moran/PlanetSKI
600 athletes from 75 countries are competing for 13 sets of medals across six disciplines:
- Downhill
- Super G
- Giant Slalom
- Slalom
- Combined
- Parallel Slalom
British eyes will be firmly focused on Dave Ryding in the slalom who has the best chance of making the podium, though he is seen as an outside contender.
However he has already been on the World Cup podium this season:
At the end of last month at the night slalom in Schladming he came just outside the top ten:
Dave Ryding. Image © PlanetSKI
The GB alpine team has some depth and they will be giving it their all.
Mikaela Shiffrin and Marco Odermatt headline the 47th edition of the Championships.
Mikaela Shiffrin (USA):
The American is the only skier to have won gold medals at five consecutive World Championships and she’s now tied in second place in the all-time women’s medal list (11, including six golds) along with France’s Marielle Goitschel and Anja Parson of Sweden.
The 27-year-old, who stepped on the podium in four events last time out at Cortina 2021, has a chance to equal or overtake the record of Germany’s Christl Cranz, who won 15 medals between 1934 and 1939.
Marco Odermatt (Switzerland)
The Swiss, who comfortably tops the overall World Cup standings, came away empty-handed from Cortina 2021 and will look to win his first medal at the senior Worlds following six golds in the junior competition.
2023 Alpine World Championships. Image © PlanetSKI
For the first time at the World Championships, competitions will be shared by two separate venues.
The Roc de Fer piste in Meribel will host the women’s events and the parallel slalom medal races (team and invidual).
The men will compete on L’Eclipse track in Courchevel.
Meribel staged the women’s alpine competitions during Albertville 1992 and featured World Cup events in 2013, 2015 and 2022.
Courchevel’s L’Eclipse made its official debut at last year’s World Cup Finals and is known for its demanding runs (3.2km in length, 30% average gradient).
The resorts of Meribel and Courchevel are connected by a 10-km-long road.
Schedule 2023 Alpine Ski World Championships
Monday 6 February – Women’s Combined (11:00/14:30 in Meribel)
Tuesday 7 February – Men’s Combined (11:00/14:30 in Courchevel)
Wednesday 8 February – Women’s Super G (11:30 in Meribel)
Thursday 9 February – Men’s Super G (11:30 in Courchevel)
Saturday 11 February – Women’s Downhill (11:00 in Meribel)
Sunday 12 February – Men’s Downhill (11:00 in Courchevel)
Tuesday 14 February – Team Parallel (12:15 in Meribel)
Wednesday 15 February – Individual Parallel (1200 in Meribel)
Thursday 16 February – Women’s Giant Slalom (10:00/13:30 in Meribel)
Friday 17 February – Men’s Giant Slalom (10:00/13:30 in Courchevel)
Saturday 18 February – Women’s Slalom (10:00/13:30 in Meribel)
Sunday 19 February – Men’s Slalom (10:00/13:30 in Courchevel)
The BBC will be covering the event and you can also check out the live results on the FIS website and read the latest alpine skiing’s stories on Olympics.com
The next Alpine World Championships will take place in Saalbach, Austria, in 2025.
Crans-Montana, Switzerland, will host the 2027 edition.
In the meantime we’re looking forward to two weeks of skiing competition.
We’ll be reporting back…
PlanetSKI log
This article was originally published by Planetski.eu. Read the original article here.
