The Black Snake once again lives up to its reputation at the Downhill World Championships in Val di Sole. Rain that fell overnight into Saturday turns the already steep and technical course in Daolasa di Commezzadura into a slippery affair in places. The juniors, in particular, face challenging conditions in the morning. In the end, Tilly Boadle, Raoul Schneeberger, Valentina Höll, and Jackson Goldstone come out on top.

Goldstone turns the final around

In the Elite Men’s category, the battle for the rainbow jersey turns into a nail-biter. Qualifying winner Lachlan Stevens-McNab set a time of 3:29.480 minutes—a mark that left the following riders struggling to keep up. Asa Vermette came within 0.813 seconds. Jordan Williams falls just short: The Brit is a mere seven thousandths of a second behind Stevens-McNab.  

This keeps the New Zealander in the lead as only defending champion Jackson Goldstone remains in the starting gate. The Canadian trails at first but picks up the pace in the second half of the course. With a time of 3:28.785 minutes, he ultimately beats Stevens-McNab by 0.695 seconds and defends his rainbow jersey. Williams is just seven thousandths of a second behind in third place.  

Goldstone and Val di Sole are a perfect match: in 2021, he became junior world champion here, and in 2023 and 2025, he won World Cup races on the Black Snake. Now comes his next big triumph.  

From a DACH perspective, Andreas Kolb delivered a strong race. The Austrian finishes fifth, 2.622 seconds behind. Henri Kiefer also secures a German top-ten finish in eighth place. His compatriot Max Hartenstern, on the other hand, is unable to compete at all. A crash during practice that resulted in a broken kneecap ends his World Championships before the qualifiers even begin.  

Results

Höll Makes It Five

In the women’s race, the World Championship title once again goes to Valentina Höll. The Austrian delivers at the decisive moment and wins in 4:01.558 minutes. This is already her fifth consecutive elite World Championship title. No other female rider has won the rainbow jersey since 2022.  

But Lisa Baumann keeps things exciting. The Swiss rider had already turned heads with the fastest time in qualifying and confirmed her form in the final. At one point, she dropped back to fourth place, but picked up the pace again in the lower section of the course and set a new best time of 4:03.286 minutes. Only Höll was faster in the end. Baumann fell 1.728 seconds short of the big win.  

For the two-time European champion, silver is nonetheless a milestone: It is Baumann’s first World Championship medal at the elite level and the first Swiss World Championship medal in downhill since Camille Balanche’s silver in 2023. Bronze goes to Britain’s Hattie Harnden, who finished 2.046 seconds behind. Nina Hoffmann missed the podium by just 1.301 seconds, finishing fourth.  

Results

Schneeberger surprises everyone

Raoul Schneeberger had provided the Swiss upset of the day earlier. The 17-year-old had finished only 15th in qualifying and was therefore not among the top names on the list of favorites. But in the final, his run came together perfectly.  

Schneeberger was still in second place going into the final section of the course, but found those crucial tenths of a second on the descent. The clock stopped at 3:47.477 minutes. Briton Felix Griffiths came dangerously close to him once again but finished 0.450 seconds behind. Local hero Filippo Gilardino took bronze, 1.180 seconds behind, even though his chain broke during his run.  

Schneeberger’s success didn’t come entirely out of the blue, however. The Swiss rider had already demonstrated his speed several times this season, including a second-place finish at the World Cup in Loudenvielle and a third-place finish in qualifying in Andorra. His biggest success of his career to date now follows on the Black Snake.

Results

Boadle Dominates the Junior Women’s Division

The outcome in the junior women’s division was less close. Tilly Boadle handled the difficult conditions best and cruised to the world championship title in 4:13.323 minutes. The Australian finished 7.636 seconds ahead of the American Aletha Ostgaard. Indy Deavoll from New Zealand secured the bronze medal despite a fall, finishing 16.895 seconds behind.  

Results

This brings the downhill day in Val di Sole to a close with two successful title defenses in the elite category and a Swiss medal haul of gold and silver. Höll remains the undisputed World Championship queen of her generation, while Goldstone reaffirms his special connection to the Black Snake. And with Baumann and, in particular, the 17-year-old Schneeberger, Switzerland has made a strong statement.