Vali Höll celebrates her fourth season victory in La Thuile and extends her World Cup lead

Despite her narrow miss in Switzerland, Höll showed commanding form in La Thuile. Her time of just under four minutes on the technically demanding course underscores her current dominance in women's downhill.

Strong teammate and strong New Zealander

The course in La Thuile is considered one of the more selective on the entire World Cup calendar. With its length and significant elevation change, it places high demands on endurance, line choice, and courage. Höll mastered these challenges best, once again relegating Baumann to second.

For Baumann, second place in La Thuile marks her seventh podium of the season. The Swiss rider, who also races for the Commencal team, remains the only rider capable of seriously challenging Höll in the overall standings.

Earnest completed the podium in third, celebrating her best result of the season. The New Zealander had not consistently finished among the top three in previous races and reached the podium for the first time this season in La Thuile.

Next stop: Pal Arinsal

Looking ahead in the season, the pack now travels to Andorra. The next downhill race takes place in one week in Pal Arinsal. Höll heads into the race as the clear leader of the overall standings and can extend her advantage further.

The women's World Cup calendar features several stops on different continents this season. After the Alpine races in Lenzerheide and La Thuile, Pal Arinsal is the next high-alpine event, likely to be just as demanding as the previous stops.

Höll has belonged to the world elite in women's downhill for years and, as world champion, is one of the most successful athletes in her discipline. With her season victories so far, she reinforces her claim to win the overall World Cup again this year.