From Mariazell, AUT
(January 26, 2025) – It’s been often said over the last couple of seasons that Evelin Lanthaler is mostly racing herself, dominating races in ways only the greats have. That said, there has been one record she’s been chasing and has now caught: Ekaterina Lavrenteva’s record 55 World Cup victories.
Lanthaler matched that mark on Sunday with another outstanding performance, this time bettering teammate Jenny Castiglioni and Austrian Tina Unterberger for gold.
Castiglioni took the lead in the first heat from the fifth starting position, and watched the next ten sliders all miss her mark. Lanthaler was the final slider to start in the first heat, was .29 quicker at the top and .54 at the bottom to take the lead handily over Castiglioni and Austria’s Riccarda Ruetz.
In the second heat, Unterberger put down a very quick run from sixth and held the lead as Italy’s Lotte Musler and Nadine Staffler, as well as Ruetz all failed to match her two-run time.
Castiglioni was the penultimate slider in the second heat, and while she was out-slid by Unterberger in the second run, she had plenty in the bank to take the lead with only Lanthaler left at the top.
Like most everyone else in the first heat, Lanthaler was a little slower in the second heat, and her second run downtime was equal to Unterberger’s, but plenty enough to win over Castiglioni by .71 for win number 55, with Unterberger in third.
The win was number 55, matching Lavrenteva’s mark. It was also her 32nd straight World Cup win and 43rd in the last 44 races.
“Of course I’m happy about the statistics,” Lanthaler told FIL media after the race. “But records aren’t my goal. I Just want to deliver good performances and win races.”
For Castiglioni, the medal was the first on the season, while Unterberger’s bronze was her second medal.
Ruetz was fourth, two tenths of a second ahead of Nadine Staffler in fifth.
Katie Cookman rounded out the top ten for the United States.
With two stops left in the FIL World Cup calendar, Lanthaler has a commanding lead over everyone else. Behind her, Unterberger is up to second overall, with Daniela Mittermair third, Ruetz fourth, and Staffler fifth.
Results:
| Pos | Name | Nation | Bib | Start 1 | Start 2 | Run 1 | Run 2 | Total |
| 1 | Evelin Lanthaler | ITA | 16 | 10.21 | 10.27 | 50.77 | 51.66 | 1:42.43 |
| 2 | Jenny Castiglioni | ITA | 5 | 10.50 | 10.37 | 51.31 | 51.83 | 1:43.14 |
| 3 | Tina Unterberger | AUT | 14 | 10.41 | 10.33 | 51.90 | 51.66 | 1:43.56 |
| 4 | Riccarda Ruetz | AUT | 13 | 10.38 | 10.43 | 51.66 | 52.35 | 1:44.01 |
| 5 | Nadine Staffler | ITA | 12 | 10.64 | 10.50 | 51.82 | 52.39 | 1:44.21 |
| 6 | Lotte Musler | ITA | 4 | 10.41 | 10.55 | 51.88 | 52.42 | 1:44.30 |
| 7 | Lisa Walch | GER | 11 | 10.61 | 10.75 | 52.94 | 52.24 | 1:45.18 |
| 8 | Carina Miller | AUT | 3 | 10.65 | 10.75 | 52.84 | 53.43 | 1:46.27 |
| 9 | Hannah Nagele | AUT | 6 | 10.87 | 10.80 | 52.86 | 53.93 | 1:46.79 |
| 10 | Katie Cookman | USA | 8 | 11.00 | 11.23 | 57.04 | 54.97 | 1:52.01 |
| 11 | Patricija Urbanc | CRO | 7 | 12.52 | 12.03 | 57.63 | 55.76 | 1:53.93 |
| 12 | Daniela Mittermair | ITA | 15 | 10.48 | 51.89 | |||
| 13 | Naomi Thöni | AUT | 9 | 10.85 | 53.01 | |||
| 14 | Tina Stuffer | ITA | 10 | 10.77 | 53.27 | |||
| 15 | Emma Reutz | AUT | 1 | 10.78 | 54.15 |