Solden Mens GS Run 1: Braathen Leads, Odermatt Fourth, and a Wind Shortened Course Sets Up a Second Run Shootout

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Who leads after Run 1 at Solden?

Lucas Pinheiro Braathen leads the men's giant slalom at Solden after the first run on Sunday 25 October. The Brazilian Olympic champion and reigning World Cup giant slalom title holder clocked 52.40 seconds on the Rettenbach glacier, and he will start Run 2 as the last skier down, with the best chance to defend his lead. Braathen's lead is not large, but it is significant. He is 0.24 seconds ahead of Switzerland's Loic Meillard in second place, 0.49 seconds ahead of Austria's Stefan Brennsteiner in third, and 0.55 seconds ahead of defending Solden champion Marco Odermatt in fourth. In giant slalom, half a second is a lot, but it is not an unassailable lead, especially on a course that has already been changed by the wind once today. Run 2, which starts at 13:00 Central European Time, will decide the winner, and the top seven are all within 0.74 seconds of each other. Braathen's Run 1 performance was a statement. A year after failing to finish the opening giant slalom on this glacier, he returned and delivered the fastest first run of the men's 2026-27 Alpine World Cup season. He is unbeaten in giant slalom since his Olympic breakthrough, having also won the final two World Cup giant slalom races last season to seal the discipline title. He switched nationalities two years ago to represent his mother's home country, Brazil, and his slalom victory in Levi, Finland, nearly a year ago was Brazil's first World Cup victory in Alpine skiing. Now he is chasing a giant slalom win that would confirm him as the skier to beat this season.

What is the Run 1 top seven?

The top seven after Run 1, confirmed by Ski Racing and Associated Press reporting, are as follows. Times are for Run 1 only, and the gap is to Braathen's leading time. | Position | Skier | Country | Bib | Run 1 time | Gap | | 1 | Lucas Pinheiro Braathen | Brazil | 4 | 52.40 | - | | 2 | Loic Meillard | Switzerland | 5 | 52.64 | Plus 0.24 | | 3 | Stefan Brennsteiner | Austria | 2 | 52.89 | Plus 0.49 | | 4 | Marco Odermatt | Switzerland | 6 | 52.95 | Plus 0.55 | | 5 | Atle Lie McGrath | Norway | 1 | 53.04 | Plus 0.64 | | 6 | Fabian Gratz | Germany | 10 | 53.09 | Plus 0.69 | | 7 | Henrik Kristoffersen | Norway | 7 | 53.14 | Plus 0.74 | Odermatt, the five time defending overall World Cup champion, stands fourth, 0.55 seconds behind. That is a good position for a skier chasing a sixth straight overall title, because he is close enough to win with a strong second run, but he will need to be faster than Braathen, Meillard and Brennsteiner on the second course. Odermatt won the Solden opener last season, his third Solden win, and he knows this glacier better than anyone in the field. He also knows that Braathen, not Odermatt, is the reigning giant slalom globe holder, after Braathen took the discipline title from him last season. McGrath, who started first with bib 1, is fifth, 0.64 seconds behind, after battling gusty conditions on his run. Gratz, starting bib 10, is sixth, and Kristoffersen, starting bib 7, is seventh. The fact that seven skiers starting bib 31 or higher fought their way into the second run shows how much the conditions changed the race, and how much opportunity there was for lower ranked skiers to make a mark.

How did the wind change the race?

The course was shortened due to strong winds on the upper portion of the Rettenbach glacier, and the race was held in difficult conditions. The start was moved to a lower, reserve start gate, which shortened the course and changed the rhythm of the race. Strong winds on the upper glacier made the original start unsafe, and the organisers made the right decision to move the start down, rather than risk a race in dangerous conditions. The wind affected different skiers in different ways. Early starters, like McGrath with bib 1, faced gusts that made it hard to hold a clean line. Later starters faced a course that had already been skied by many racers, with ruts and changes in the snow. Marco Schwarz, of Austria, lost control shortly into his run and went through a gate, ending his race early. That is a reminder of how unforgiving giant slalom is: one mistake, one gate missed, and the race is over. The shortened course also means the times are faster than they would have been on the full course, and the gaps are smaller. Braathen's 52.40 seconds is a fast time for a shortened course, but it is not directly comparable to previous Solden times on the full course. What matters is the gap, not the absolute time, and the gap from first to seventh is only 0.74 seconds. That is a close race, and Run 2 will be a shootout.

What happened on Saturday in the women's race?

Saturday's women's giant slalom at Solden set the tone for the weekend. Paula Moltzan, of the United States, won her first World Cup race, at the age of 32, by 0.01 seconds over Lara Colturi, after starting fifth after Run 1. Moltzan had 10 second and third place finishes before Saturday, and she had been dropped from the US Ski Team 10 years ago, before fighting her way back. Her win was described by Moltzan herself as feeling like a fairytale, pretty unreal. Mikaela Shiffrin, the record holder with 110 World Cup wins, led after Run 1 on Saturday with a time of 1:07.27, ahead of Julia Scheib's challengers, but then had the 27th fastest second run and finished seventh overall. Defending Solden winner Julia Scheib crashed out in Run 1 after the fastest intermediate splits, in a highside crash that ended her race. The women's race showed that Solden is unpredictable, that leads can disappear in Run 2, and that first time winners can emerge from the chasing pack. The men's race on Sunday is following a similar pattern, with a close top seven and a second run that could change everything.

When is Run 2, and where can you watch it?

Run 2 of the men's giant slalom starts at 13:00 Central European Time on Sunday 25 October. That is the time to watch, because the winner will be decided in Run 2, with the skiers running in reverse order of their Run 1 positions, so the leaders go last. | Location | Run 2 start, Sunday 25 October | | Solden, Austria, CET | 13:00 | | London, GMT | 12:00 | | Berlin, Paris, Madrid, Rome, Amsterdam, CET | 13:00 | | New York, Toronto, EDT | 08:00 | | Los Angeles, PDT | 05:00 | | Karachi, PKT | 17:00 | In the United States, the race is shown on Peacock and NBCSN, with Run 2 at 08:00 Eastern Time. In the UK, TNT Sports on HBO Max carries World Cup Alpine skiing. In continental Europe, check local rights holders, because World Cup skiing rights vary by country, and the FIS website lists broadcast partners. The race is also available through the FIS live timing service, which gives split times for every skier as they come down the course. If you are watching from Pakistan, Run 2 starts at 17:00 PKT, which is a convenient evening time. If you are watching from the United States, Run 2 starts early, at 08:00 Eastern and 05:00 Pacific, so set an alarm or catch the replay. If you are watching from the UK, Run 2 starts at midday, which is a perfect lunchtime watch.

What does Run 2 mean for the season?

Run 2 at Solden matters for more than just this race. It sets the early World Cup standings, it gives the winner 100 World Cup points, and it gives the other top finishers points that will matter all season. For Odermatt, a win would be a perfect start to his chase for a sixth straight overall title, a feat only Marcel Hirscher, with eight titles, has bettered. For Braathen, a win would confirm that last season's giant slalom globe was not a one off, and that he is now the man to beat in the discipline. For Meillard, Brennsteiner, McGrath, Gratz and Kristoffersen, a podium finish would be a strong start to the season and a sign that they can challenge the top two all winter. For the skiers starting bib 31 or higher who made Run 2, a top 15 or top 20 finish would be a career highlight and a sign that the depth of men's giant slalom is stronger than ever. The next stop on the men's World Cup tour after Solden is Zermatt, Switzerland, for downhill races in November, but the giant slalom season will continue through the winter, with races in Val d'Isere, Alta Badia, Adelboden and elsewhere. Solden is the opener, not the decider, but openers matter. They set the tone, they give confidence, and they tell the rest of the field who is in form. Braathen is in form. Odermatt is close behind. Run 2 will tell us who starts the season with a win. Related: Solden preview guide and Moltzan first World Cup win. Sources: Associated Press, Ski Racing, FIS Alpine World Cup, NBC Sports.