World Ski Championships Saalbach, Italy starts off with a bang: it’s gold in the parallel

World Ski Championships Saalbach, Italy starts with a bang: è gold in the parallel

Italy starts off with a bang at the World Ski Championships in Saalbach 2025 by graduating as World Parallel Champion. Alex Vinatzer, Filippo Della Vite, Lara Della Mea and Giorgia Collomb triumphed in the mixed parallel team event, the first event of the rainbow event, overcoming Switzerland in the final.

The confrontation with the Swiss, which ended on 2 to 2 – with Collomb getting the better of Holdener in the opening and Vinatzer beating Tumler in the closing, while in the middle Della Vite had to surrender in front of Aerni and Della Mea è was outdone by Darbellay -, saw the Azzurri prevail by 45 cents.

A historic result for Italy, which had never managed to climb the highest step of the podium in the specialty: the only previous one was the bronze collected in 2019 in Aare with the same Della Mea and Vinatzer as protagonists, along with Irene Curtoni and Simon Maurberger. With Vinatzer also on the podium in the Courchevel 2023 slalom, for Collomb and Della Vite it is instead the first rainbow medal of their careers.

"It’ was a wonderful victory, there could not have been a better start to these World Championships. The track was fantastic and the’atmosphere charged us to the max" said Filippo Della Vite. "We did a great teamwork, è it was a’true battle" instead the hot words of Collomb.

After the eighth round of the finals overcame 4 to 0 against Ukraine, the Italian quartet was able to get the better of France 3 to 1 in the quarters, with the victorious challenge with Sweden opening the doors wide toward the final for the gold. A duel, the one with Sara Hector and her teammates, won by the Italians by the best sum of times after the 2 to 2 on the track, with wins by Della Mea and Collomb. But a hundredth less allowed Italy to advance to the final.