The Alpine Skiing World Cup is one of the major events on the winter calendar. Here’s a look back at its history, how it works and this 59th edition.
The Alpine Skiing World Cup: a rich and exciting history
Created in 1967 at the instigation of a group of journalists and coaches at the 1966 Alpine World Ski Championships, the World Cup is an annual competition organised by the International Ski Federation (FIS). One of its founders was French journalist Serge Lang of L’Equipe newspaper.
The very first World Cup event was held in Berchtesgaden, Bavaria. Initially, the competition consisted of just three disciplines: downhill, slalom and giant slalom. Over time, new events such as super-G, alpine combined and parallel were added to diversify the competition, before the last two were phased out in 2021.
The legendary slopes of the Alpine Skiing World Cup
Some Alpine Skiing World Cup tracks have become legendary because of their difficulty, their history and the performances that have been achieved on them. These include the Streif at Kitzbühel in Austria. It is considered to be the most difficult downhill run in the world. With its vertiginous slopes and technical sections such as the ‘Mausefalle’, it offers a unique spectacle. The Face de Bellevarde in the French resort of Val d’Isère, designed for the 1992 Olympic Games, is famous for its extreme technicality and impressive walls. And let’s not forget the legendary Italian downhill, the Stelvio at Bormio, where the demanding route and icy conditions put the best downhillers to the test.
The challenges of the Alpine Skiing World Cup
The aim of the World Cup is to identify the season’s best skiers in all events and disciplines. It is a long-term competition, with a championship held over several months in different countries. It showcases the versatility of athletes capable of winning in a variety of disciplines: downhill, super-G, giant slalom and slalom. It’s a great way to showcase alpine skiing. It’s an event followed by millions of fans around the world.
How does the Alpine Skiing World Cup ranking work?
The current points system, in place since the 1992-1993 season, is based on the skiers’ performances in each event. The top 30 finishers in each race score points. The winner of a race earns 100 points, the runner-up 80, the third-placed skier 60 and so on, while the 30th-placed skier earns a single point. When the World Cup was launched, only the top 10 finishers received points.
Since its inception, the competition has rewarded the skiers who score the most points over the whole season. The Crystal Globe is awarded each year to the male and female winners. Thanks to this system, skiers are rewarded for their consistency throughout the season, unlike at the Olympic Games or World Championships, where the title is decided in a single competition.
World Cup legends
From its very beginnings, the Alpine Skiing World Cup has left its mark on the history of skiing thanks to the exceptional performances of Jean-Claude Killy, the French legend who won the first two editions in the men’s category, and Switzerland’s Nancy Greene, who dominated the 1967 and 1968 seasons in the women’s category.
Other champions have left their mark on the competition. Austrian Marcel Hirscher, who ended his career in 2019, holds the record for the number of consecutive Crystal Globes won, with eight titles between 2012 and 2019. On the women’s side, American Mikaela Shiffrin has become a benchmark with 95 World Cup victories to date, an all-time record among women. These victories add to her record of 5 Crystal Globes and several Olympic medals.
Among the other names that have left their mark on the history of alpine skiing, Lindsey Vonn, who retired from competition in 2016, left her mark on the women’s circuit with 82 World Cup victories, as did Italy’s Alberto Tomba, a two-time winner of the Crystal Globe and a specialist in technical events.
The 2024-2025 season: dates and programme
This 59th edition of the Alpine Skiing World Cup began on 26 and 27 October 2024 with the traditional opening stage in Sölden, Austria , and will finish in the United States , in Sun Valley, on 27 March 2025.
Men’s calendar
Over the course of the competition, the skiers will compete in 38 events at 19 venues in Europe and North America:
- 9 downhill events(Beaver Creek, Val Gardena, Bormio, Wengen, Kitzbühel, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Crans-Montana, Kvitfjell, Sun Valley)
- 8 super-Gevents ( Beaver Creek, Val Gardena, Bormio, Wengen, Kitzbühel, Crans-Montana, Kvitfjell, Sun Valley)
- 9 giant slalom events(Sölden, Beaver Creek, Val d’Isère, Alta Badia, Adelboden, Schladming, Kranjska Gora, Hafjell, Sun Valley)
- 12 slalom events(Levi, Gurgl, Val d’Isère, Alta Badia, Madonna, Adelboden, Wengen, Kitzbühel, Schladming, Kranjska Gora, Hafjell, Sun Valley)
Ladies’ calendar
For their part, the women skiers will take part in 36 events at 20 venues, also in Europe and North America:
- 7 downhill events(Beaver Creek, Cortina d’Ampezzo, Grarmisch-Partenkirchen, Kvitfjell, La Thuile, Sun Valley)
- 9 super-G events(Beaver Creek, Saint-Moritz, Cortina d’Ampezzo, Grarmisch-Partenkirchen, Kvitfjell, La Thuile, Sun Valley)
- 10 giant slalomevents ( Sölden, Killington, Semmering, Kranjska Gora, Saint-Anton, Kronplatz, Sestrières, Åre, Sun Valley)
- 10 slalom events(Levi, Gurgl, Killington, Semmerin, Kranjska Gora, Saint-Anton, Flachau, Courchevel, Sestrières, Åre, Sun Valley)
The finals in Sun Valley
For the first time since 2017, the World Cup finals will once again be held in the United States. The season will come to a close in the American ski resort of Sun Valley, in Idaho , where the best skiers in each category (men and women) will be rewarded with the precious Crystal Globe.
The Alpine Skiing World Cup remains a key event on the international circuit, combining history, tradition and performance. With exceptional athletes and a rich programme, the 2024-2025 season promises to be an exciting time on the world’s slopes.
