Moltzan Wins First World Cup Race in Sölden

A first win decided by a narrow margin

Moltzan’s victory came in the 2026-27 World Cup season opener in Sölden, Austria. Colturi’s second place left the winner’s margin at just one hundredth of a second, making the result a close contest rather than a runaway finish.

Germany’s Emma Aicher took third, 0.52 seconds behind Moltzan. The podium placed three skiers from different countries among the leading finishers and underlined how tightly the top positions were contested.

Moltzan turns fifth into first

The American began the decisive run in fifth after the opening descent, then moved ahead of the field to secure the win. The change in position gives the result its particular weight: Moltzan did not simply hold a lead but overturned the early order in the second run.

Before Sölden, Moltzan had recorded 10 World Cup podiums without a victory. The win therefore marks a breakthrough in her career, converting a record of repeated high finishes into a first place at the sport’s top World Cup level.

Shiffrin’s lead does not hold

Shiffrin started the second run at the front after setting the fastest time in the opener. She ended seventh overall, 0.83 seconds behind Moltzan, as a difficult second descent cost her the advantage she had built in the morning.

The result gives the season opener an unexpected shape: the skier who led after the first run finished outside the podium, while the skier in fifth rose to win. For Shiffrin, seventh is the final placing from Sölden; for Moltzan, it is the day she secured her first World Cup victory.

A new milestone in the season opener

Moltzan is 32 and changed ski equipment ahead of the season, making her Sölden victory a significant early return on a period of preparation and adjustment. The result establishes her as a race winner, not only a regular podium finisher, as the 2026-27 World Cup begins.

Her reaction captured the scale of the moment: “It feels like a fairy tale right now. Pretty unreal, and I think it’ll take a minute to settle in,” Moltzan said. The narrow margin over Colturi and the recovery from fifth made the opening race a particularly dramatic setting for that first win.

Takeaway: Moltzan opened the 2026-27 World Cup with her first victory, while first-run leader Shiffrin finished seventh in Sölden.

Sources

• olympics.com — “2026-27 FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Sölden: Shiffrin begins 'season of exploration' with seventh place in Sölden as Moltzan claims first World Cup win”
• espn.com — “Moltzan wins giant slalom opener; Shiffrin settles for 7th – ESPN”
• skiracing.com — “Moltzan Claims First World Cup Victory in Sölden Podium Shake-Up – Ski Racing Media”
• sports.yahoo.com — “Paula Moltzan earns long-awaited first Alpine skiing World Cup win to open season – Yahoo Sports”
• snowbrains.com — “Paula Moltzan Wins Season Opener in Solden, Austria”