Hoffman and Lapanja Share Victory as Winters Dominates Slalom at US Alpine Championships
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Ellie Hartman
Featured Image: Luke Winters competing at US Alpine Championships. Credit: Steven Konrreich @steven_kornreich
The last day of the Toyota US Alpine Championships, presented by Stifel, concluded with a thrilling slalom race. The men and women left nothing on the track in hopes of achieving the Championship title.
Pete Sontag, the Vice President and General Manager at Sun Valley Resort, stated, “We were excited to host the Alpine Championships again this year. It is an honor to be asked by US Ski and Snowboard to host their National Championship,” He continued, “We can translate that into potentially bigger events down the road.”
Fans came out to cheer on the racers each day, which added to the excitement and showed the local support for the athletes.
“It is always a treat to come here because it is a part of the ski racing culture we don’t see very often. It is a hidden gem out in the Idaho mountains,” Stifel US Ski Team athlete River Radamus stated.
The weather was spring-like throughout the competition, but the snow continued to hold up nicely for the racers.
The women ended with a thrilling tie for first place. Stifel US Ski Team athlete Lila Lapanja shared the top step with Australian and University of Utah athlete Madison Hoffman. For the men, Stifel US Ski Team racer Luke Winters dominated the field by over four-tenths.
The Men’s Slalom
The men started the final day of racing at the US Alpine Championships. The energy seemed high amongst the athletes, with an excitement to leave nothing on the hill in the 2024 concluding race.
Stifel US Ski Team racer Luke Winters was the first to ignite out of the start gate. He got into a rhythm where he continued to generate momentum down the track. He came through the finish line setting a pace of 50.48, which proved difficult for other racers to catch in the first run.
However, his teammate, Benjamin Ritchie, came close, crossing the finish line just +0.01 off Winter’s lead.
Racing bib-7, the Croatian Matej Vidovic attacked from top to bottom on the first run but came through +0.58 behind the lead. The run still put him into 3rd place heading into the second run, but he needed to make up time to stand on the top of the podium.
The work was cut out for the field heading into the final run, and the pressure elevated as the athletes wanted to finalize the season on the leaderboard.
Starting third on the second run, Stewart Bruce utilized the fresh course to his advantage. He skied a clean run and attacked through each gate. Bruce was able to move up ten positions from 28th to 18th place. It revealed that the later athletes, starting first in the flip, could make up time with the instilled confidence of a fresh track.
Nevertheless, the track continued to hold up nicely for the top athletes, so they pushed their limits to try and get closer or overcome Winters’ lead.
Stifel US Ski Team athlete Isaiah Nelson finished 9th in the first run, coming into the second run +1.49 behind his teammate. It fueled him for the second run, and he went all out, punching through each turn with nothing to lose. He ended up putting down the fastest second run time, which moved him to 4th place.
Junior World Championships winner Ryder Sarchett also came down on the second run, making up time, which moved him into 6th place from 11th.
Benjamin Ritchie pushed out of the start with eagerness to make up just a hundredth of a second to beat Winters. Unfortunately, Ritchie did not finish. His DNF changed the podium as Vidovic and Camden Palmquist of the Stifel US Ski Team skied two solid runs, which put them into 2nd and 3rd place (Palmquist).
Luke Winters had the fifth fastest time on the second run, but with his substantial lead from the first run, he held onto victory (-0.43).
The Women’s Slalom
The Stifel US Ski Team athlete Lila Lapanja wore bib-1, setting the pace for the field. Lapanja won at the National Junior Championships in slalom this season and scored points in one World Cup race in Jasna. Her primary focus has been on the European Cup, where she achieved three top-10 finishes.
She unveiled her confidence in the first run and established a hefty lead, -0.93 ahead of the field.
Her teammate, Zoe Zimmerman, finished the first run in second with composed skiing but would need to go full-throttle to make up the time to clinch the victory.
Norwegian and University of Utah athlete Kaja Norbye was in 3rd position after the first run, and her teammate Madison Hoffman was in 5th. They both aimed for a podium finish and needed to go all out to get on the steps.
Hoffman gave a highlight performance on the second run. She punched down the fall line and generated speed through the critical sections to win the final run by -0.73.
On the other hand, Lapanja lost some speed and finished +0.93 behind Hoffman’s second run time. Nevertheless, with their combined efforts in both runs, the athletes ended up sharing the Championship title. It marked an exciting end to the last day of competition and underscored the significance of attention to detail in the sport.
Zimmerman put together two fast runs and held her spot on the podium, rounding out the top 3. Norbye was bumped off the podium into a commendable 4th place, +0.15 off Zimmerman’s overall time.
The week of the US Alpine Championships was a success due to Sun Valley Resort’s tremendous efforts onhill preparation and the events on and off the hill.
“We are hopeful that we will be named as the site for the 2025 World Cup Finals, so we will be back here next year on a much bigger stage visible for the entire world to see, which is pretty exciting,” Sontag stated.
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