Real all-rounder

After her debut victory, ÖSV girl now heads for the downhill

Victoria Olivier not only showed that she can ski downhill at her World Cup debut in Saalbach.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

After Vorarlberg's Victoria Olivier clinched her first European Cup victory in Hippach on Saturday, it was on to her home town of Au. Where the 20-year-old is taking a two-day break before the next big challenge awaits the army athlete next week in the posh Swiss ski resort of St. Moritz.

"We didn't have much time to celebrate and toast, as we didn't get home until quite late," revealed Victoria Olivier, after she and her dad Heinrich only arrived in their Vorarlberg home of Au on Saturday evening. In her luggage: a wooden trophy for her first European Cup victory - incidentally the first for a Vorarlberg giant slalom racer since Nina Ortlieb on March 9, 2018 in La Molina (Sp) - which she had achieved just a few hours earlier in the giant slalom in Hippach, and plenty of emotions.

Victoria Olivier (center) celebrated her first European Cup victory in Hippach, beating Switzerland's Vanessa Kasper (left) and Kathi Truppe (right).

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Why the joy was particularly great
"The success was so intense for me because I simply hadn't expected it at all," says the 20-year-old army athlete, looking back on the race. "I did really well in the pre-season preparations. However, nothing went right at the European Cup opener in Zinal and the first run in Hippach wasn't good either." What the reason for this was - a mystery. Just like the fact that "Vici" then ignited the turbo in run two and stormed to victory with the best run time from 18th place at the halfway point. "I already noticed during the run that I could do better. When I crossed the finish line with a 1.10-second lead, I was satisfied, but I wouldn't have dreamed that it would be enough to win," said the Head driver.

Victoria Olivier is a real all-rounder. She made her World Cup debut in the downhill in Saalbach in March 2024.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

She was crowned U18 World Champion in the super-G in 2022.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

She celebrated her first European Cup victory in the giant slalom on Saturday in Hippach.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

In the slalom, she took third place at the Austrian Championships in 2024.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Big program and full focus
She is now in second place in the overall European Cup standings after the first three - out of a total of 37 - events of the season, six points behind Switzerland's Delphine Darbellay. "My focus this winter is clearly on the European Cup," says Vici. "The plan is for me to compete in all four disciplines. Of course, this has to be well planned so that I get enough rest and am not on the move all the time." She would have skipped the slalom planned for Sunday in Hippach anyway, which was canceled due to the weather. "Because after two days of rest, I'm off to Switzerland," explains Olivier.

Great potential in the downhill
Two downhill races await her there in St. Moritz - the first two in the European Cup. "We've already skied a few days of super-G in Sölden in preparation, but it hasn't really been much so far," reveals the young skier from Bregenzerwald, who has already proven that she is also very comfortable on long skis. After securing the downhill and super-G titles in the U18 class at the Junior World Championships in Panorama (Canada) in 2022, she was able to celebrate winning gold in the downhill at the Junior World Championships in Chatel, France, in January of this year - which also brought her her World Cup debut at the final in Saalbach. "But this will be something completely different again," says Vici. "I have to feel my way around it first, especially as the competition in the European Cup is a lot bigger than at the Junior World Championships."