Timon Haugan to lead the way at the 72nd 3Tre

Norwegian Timon Haugan will be the first athlete out of the start gate at the 72nd edition of the 3Tre, the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup night slalom scheduled for tomorrow, Wednesday January 7th, in Madonna di Campiglio (1st run 6:00 pm, 2nd run 9:00 pm).

The 29-year-old Scandinavian, current leader of the Slalom World Cup standings and winner of the most recent slalom in Alta Badia, drew bib number 1 during the public draw held on Tuesday January 6th in the heart of the resort, with Piazza Sissi filled despite low temperatures expected to continue into race day. 

Haugan will look to take advantage of being first onto the Canalone Miramonti, which is set to be compact and demanding after several nights of low temperatures. He will also be aiming to break a pattern: since Madonna di Campiglio returned to the World Cup calendar in 2012, no skier starting with bib number 1 has managed to win. 

Starting immediately after Haugan will be Austria’s Fabio Gstrein (bib 2) and Brazil’s Lucas Pinheiro Braathen (bib 3). Another Norwegian, Atle Lie McGrath, will start with bib 4, followed by his compatriot and three-time 3Tre winner Henrik Kristoffersen (5), France’s Clement Noel (6) and Switzerland’s Loic Meillard (7), the reigning world champion in the discipline. 

Bulgaria’s Albert Popov, winner in Campiglio twelve months ago, will start with bib 13, while Switzerland’s Daniel Yule – also a three-time winner on the Canalone Miramonti – will leave the gate with bib number 19. 

Italian hopes rest on Alex Vinatzer and Tommaso Sala: the Südtirol skier will start with bib 17, while the Valtellina racer will wear number 27.