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11/28 15:49 CST At 34, Brennsteiner gets first World Cup win after Odermatt skis out of giant slalom At 34, Brennsteiner gets first World Cup win after Odermatt skis out of giant slalom COPPER MOUNTAIN, Colo. (AP) --- At age 34 and in his 81st World Cup across 14 seasons, Stefan Brennsteiner finally got his first win on Friday. Brennsteiner took full advantage of Olympic champion Marco Odermatt skiing out in the first run of a giant slalom to win by a big margin of 0.95 seconds. "It means a lot for me," Austria's Brennsteiner said. "The last years were quite good but I had tough times in my career." Norwegian veteran Henrik Kristoffersen was second despite seeming to struggle with his breathing at the finish-area altitude around 3,000 meters (9,850 feet) in Colorado. Filip Zubcic was third, one second behind the winner, with a fast second run to rise from 13th place. Brennsteiner held the first-run lead by just 0.26 but extended his advantage on the rougher snow for late starters in the afternoon. After his nearest challengers dropped in the standings he padded his lead despite having just the 11th fastest time for the second run. Odermatt, a winner of 27 World Cup giant slaloms in the past five years, failed to complete a race in the discipline for the first time since last December at nearby Beaver Creek. The Swiss star went out while set to post the fastest first-run time on a cold clear day in Colorado, where he lost control of his inside ski at a right-hand gate. Odermatt's rare misfire came one day after he won a super-G to make it back-to-back-wins this season. He's seeking a fifth straight World Cup overall title. Brennsteiner had four previous career podium finishes on the World Cup, all in giant slalom, including a second place in March 2022 at Kranjska Gora, Slovenia. Copper Mountain now hosts the women's World Cup circuit starring record 103-time race winner Mikaela Shiffrin this weekend. A giant slalom on Saturday is followed by a slalom on Sunday when Shiffrin seeks to add to her 66 wins in the event, the most by any skier in the World Cup's 59-year history. The men move to Beaver Creek where a three-race program starts next Friday with a downhill then super-G and giant slalom. ___ AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

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