Sölden, Austria: It was long overdue and well-deserved. A performance proving that perseverance pays off.

Competing in her 149th World Cup race, having achieved 10 career podiums, including six runner-up results, Paula Moltzan charged down the Rettenbach Glacier track, battling steady snowfall and waning visibility en route to a dramatic first career victory.

The 32-year-old ski racer, fifth after the first run, 0.59 seconds behind leader Mikaela Shiffrin, claimed Saturday’s GS race by the narrowest of margins, 0.01 seconds faster than rising star Lara Colturi.

Moltzan won the season-opening race on Van Deer skis, the first woman to step into and attain victory on the brand launched by eight-time overall World Cup champion Marcel Hirscher.

“It’s a bit of a fairy-tale ending, right? I switch skis and I win a race, it feels a bit surreal, but I’m very proud of the skiing that I put out there today,” Moltzan told POWDER, shortly after the race and team celebration in the finish area. “I maybe felt it out a little on the first run, and in the second run I took advantage of the bad weather because you can’t see, and I really trust myself.”

Moltzan joked, noting that it’s the first victory for the US tech team by someone not named Mikaela. Shiffrin owns 22 victories in the discipline, the most by any female racer all time.

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It was a shared victory for the Stifel U.S. Ski Team, with loads of credit going to Moltzan’s husband and ski technician Ryan, as well as U.S. women’s head tech coach Alek Glebov.

“It’s definitely a team victory; we operate as a whole, and I have a great team surrounding me, with my friends and teammates, coaches, and staff around me too,” she said. “It’s just the start of the season, so I see a lot more podiums and victories for our little tech team.

Moltzan elaborated on her decision and the risk she took in switching to Van Deer skis, a brand that Hirscher continues to hone and that veteran Norwegian racer Henrik Kristoffersen has triumphed on.

“Super nervous—there is a huge team behind me and a lot of money that has gone into developing these skis, but it’s clearly paid off. It’s been a cool adventure and process that we’ve gone through to develop a women’s line this summer. I’m really proud to be a part of that, and it feels kind of fake right now,” Moltzan said.

Moltzan was asked whether she was a big Marcel Hirscher fan, and she delivered a somewhat unexpected response.

“I am a huge Marcel Hirscher fan, but I will say that I’m a bigger Ted Ligety fan, but that’s because I’m American and I had a big crush on him when I was little,” she said about the four-time Sölden GS champion. “But Marcel has been super supportive and he was part of the reason that I was able to switch to Van Deer. He said yes to it and that’s why I’m here.”

Heaps of Praise from Coach Glebov

The U.S. coach Glebov, a retired racer who competed for both Slovenia and Russia at the Sochi 2014 Olympics, praised Moltzan’s perseverance and resilience. 

“She really went for it and kept it down the hill today with the mindset and confidence that it doesn’t matter what the conditions are,” Glebov told POWDER. “Paula is really professional and has grown through her career. I’m just impressed how tough she is, and she really showed it in the second run. She’s really a great example for the team, especially the younger ones.”

Moltzan improved upon her second-place performance in Sölden last season, as she finished 0.58 seconds behind Austrian Julia Scheib.

Originally from Minnesota, Moltzan grew up racing at the little Buck Hill ski area and later moved east to compete for the University of Vermont, where she won an NCAA slalom title in 2017.

Shiffrin Falters and Commends Moltzan

Shiffrin, who has created buzz in the lead-up to the season, declaring that it will be an “experimental season” as she intends to cut down on her bread-and-butter slalom, while focusing greater on GS and returning to super-G, blazed to the first run lead.

However, the six-time overall World Cup champion struggled in snowy and foggy conditions, bleeding time on the Rettenbach course’s daunting and defining steep pitch. As the final racer down, Shiffrin crossed the line 0.83 seconds behind Moltzan, an uncharacteristic seventh place.

The Colorado superstar celebrated Moltzan’s maiden triumph euphorically with teammates and coaches in the Sölden finish corral.

“Paula just showed so much grit and so much courage with it starting to get tough visibility,” Shiffrin said about her longtime tech teammate. “She just skied the way that she knows how to ski. She has had to be patient at times, and now with the Red Bib and all, it’s pretty cool.”

Mikaela’s “Experimental Season” and What’s Next?

Shiffrin will now skip slalom races in Levi, Finland and Gurgl, Austria, before her first planned race in the discipline that she has triumphed in 73 times, in Killington, Vermont, on November 29. She’ll be seeking her record-extending 111th World Cup victory. 

Shiffrin was asked if she still considers herself the favorite for an unprecedented seventh overall title, despite her revised schedule and fewer slalom points to contribute to her total.

“We need more races to see, but I would imagine that Emma (Aicher) is going to be right up there,” Shiffrin said about the multi-event German skier, who finished only 102 World Cup points behind her last season. “She would be my pick probably to be the big favorite, but we have one race under our belt.”

In Sölden, Aicher charged from ninth place after the first run to land on the podium in third. Giant slalom has generally been considered the versatile 24-year-old’s weakest event.

Regarding other potential contenders, Shiffrin said: “We’ll see how it stacks up, but I think there will be quite a few who could be strong.”\

Fun-filled Atmosphere, but Not Austria’s Day

As usual, Sölden provided a raucous, party-like atmosphere even in the morning hours, for a race that was delayed by 30 minutes due to additional course preparation following overnight snowfall. For a country that is often said to take ski racing much more seriously than religion, 14,000 spectators jam-packed the Glacier Stadium finish area on Saturday. Morning beverages flowed.

However, the Austrian morning revelry was quickly subdued as defending Sölden champion and last season’s GS crystal globe winner Julia Scheib crashed out less than 30 seconds into her run. She smacked a gate on a right-footer, got spun around, and fell on her backside.

“I had a really good feeling through the first section and then I took too much risk at one gate and everything happened very suddenly” Scheib said, after skiing to the bottom uninjured. “I felt really good at the start without any extra pressure because of last season. We have some weeks still until the Killington races and I want to go there with a good feeling.”

Celebration Time, Come Home

Naturally, the day belong to Moltzan as it was finally her moment to shine, albeit as light snow continued to fall on the Austrian mountainside. There were smiling faces abound as Moltzan’s U.S. teammate formed a circle in the finish area and chanted in unison saluting her momentous accomplishment. Moltzan noted that the celebration was only just beginning. 

“I have some really great teammates who are really a lot of fun, but I haven’t got there just yet,” she said, with a laugh.  

Moltzan will fly back to the U.S. on Sunday and home to Waitsfield, Vermont. You can be assured that she’ll savor that return trip more than any overseas flight over her lengthy 13-year U.S. Ski Team career. Saturday in Sölden was special.

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