Italian sweep at fog-hit Carezza as Payer posts 12th career win
Carezza, Italy – 5 March 2026 – Dense fog failed to slow the racing Thursday on the Dolomite piste as Roland Fischnaller and Sabine Payer claimed Parallel-Giant-Slalom victories on the Visa FIS Alpine Snowboard World Cup.
Fischnaller, 45, leads Italian podium lockout
Roland Fischnaller, starting his 160th career PGS, ousted Benjamin Karl in the opening round, then beat Alexander Payer before defeating two younger teammates in the finals. The win is his 13th in PGS and his third at Carezza, a record for the venue. Aaron March, winner last week in Cortina, finished second and now leads both the overall and PGS standings. Mirko Felicetti took third, completing the first all-Italian men’s podium this season.
Injury, age and home snow fuel veteran surge
Fischnaller said pre-race training had been limited by a leg injury. “I was riding only half the slope last week,” he noted. “Good timing made up for lost laps.” The win lifts him to 24 World Cup podiums and may mark his final run at Carezza, which is not guaranteed a slot next season. “If this was goodbye, I signed off in capital letters,” he added.
Prommegger ends Bormolini streak
Andreas Prommegger knocked tour leader Maurizio Bormolini out by 0.08 s in round one, ending the Italian’s three-race podium run. Prommegger later beat Edwin Coratti before losing to Felicetti, showing the red course could be mastered with late acceleration. Defending champion Radoslav Yankov failed to exit qualifying, and 2024 runner-up Tim Mastnak exited on a first-run DNF.
Payer earns 12th win on “toughest slope”
Sabine Payer edged Aleksandra Krol-Walas in the women’s final for her 12th career victory and first at Carezza, a slope she calls “the most challenging on the World Cup.” Krol-Walas, who upset Tsubaki Miki in the semi, took her third Carezza silver. Miki won the small final for her second podium of the season.
Early exits and Swiss DQ shuffle standings
Defending champion Jasmin Coratti lost to teammate Lucia Dalmasso in round one; both Italians were later eliminated in the quarters. Julie Zogg of Switzerland was disqualified for a gate violation and never reached the brackets. Payer now leads the PGS standings by 51 points over Miki.
Next stop: Davos slalom before holiday break
Riders travel 175 km north to Davos, Switzerland, for Saturday’s first Parallel-Slalom of the winter. After four straight PGS races, the shorter, single-pole course offers a tactical reset before the circuit pauses for the festive break.
Men’s PGS standings after Carezza
- Aaron March (ITA) – 285
- Maurizio Bormolini (ITA) – 249
- Benjamin Karl (AUT) – 211
- Mirko Felicetti (ITA) – 210
- Stefan Baumeister (GER) – 150
Women’s PGS standings after Carezza
- Sabine Payer (AUT) – 296
- Tsubaki Miki (JPN) – 245
- Lucia Dalmasso (ITA) – 211
- Elisa Caffont (ITA) – 197
- Zuzana Maderová (CZE) – 160
How to follow the next race
- Stream Saturday’s PSL live on the FIS website or Eurovision Sports geo-feed.
- Download the FIS App for real-time bracket updates; Davos starts at 09:30 CET.
- Compare course profiles: Davos is 80 m shorter and 8% steeper than Carezza—expect faster tempo.
- Track yellow-bib changes: a single PSL shake-up could swing overall leads before the break.