January 6, 2021 - The Snow Queen Trophy on Sljeme has come to an end, in which all four Croatian representatives qualified for the second run and won points.

Namely, three even achieved the result of their careers in slalom - Zubčić finished fifth, Vidović 12th, and Kolega 15th place. Rodeš finished in 23rd place after being 18th in the first run.

After the first run, the best Croatian skier was Filip Zubčić, who was one second behind the leading Frenchman Clement Noel and was in tenth place. Zubčić reached 10th place in the first run with a big mistake in front of the finish line and avoided relegation.

Istok Rodeš was 18th in the first run with the starting number 33, 1.90 seconds behind the leader, and the Croatian celebration was completed by Matej Vidović, who started with number 52, and Samuel Kolega, who started with 53.

In very demanding conditions on the Red Slope, Vidović managed to ski as if the track was in ideal condition, and 2.05 seconds behind, he reached 21st place. At the same time, Kolega was 45 hundredths of a second slower, just enough for 30th place and starting number 1 in the second run.

The second run was brilliantly opened by Kolega, whose placement improved by 15 spots. He had the second result of the second run, behind Michael Matt, and the third result of the second run was the work of Vidović, who thus advanced by nine.

Zubčić rode the first part of the second run phenomenally, but lost the advantage in the lower part and finished only one hundredth behind Matt. He was followed by Strasser, eighth in the first run, and took the first place by riding without a mistake. In the end, he kept it until the end and reached the first victory in his career. Of the five from the first run, Slovenian Hadalin finished 16th, Foss-Solevaag finished 13th, and Noel, who was leading after the first run, finished the race in seventh place. 

Strasser finally celebrated with 10 hundredths ahead of Feller, 16 ahead of Schwarz, and 47 ahead of Zubčić. Vidović was 77 hundredths behind, Kolega 97, and Rodeš one second and 91 hundredths behind.

Source: Index.hr

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

December 5, 2020 - Great news from the Croatian skiing world today as Filip Zubčić wins the giant slalom in Santa Caterina, Italy!

HRT reports that Croatian skier Filip Zubčić won the giant slalom on Saturday in Santa Caterina, Italy, with a time of 2:15.06 and a 12-hundredth advantage over second-placed Slovenian skier Žana Kranjec.

Kranjec, who finished the first run as the leader, achieved a time of 2:15.18, and in third was the Swiss skier Marco Odermatt with a time of 2:15.36 and 30 hundredths of a second behind Zubčić.

The Croatian skier finished the first run in sixth place, and a fantastic second run secured him his second World Cup victory in his career. He was the only Croatian representative in Santa Caterina to take over the organization of the two giant slaloms from Val d'Isere, France.

This is Zubčić's best result this season and his second victory in the World Cup. Last season he won the giant slalom in Naeba, Japan, and in addition he reached two other places (Hintestoder, Adelboden).

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

October 18, 2020 - On Sunday, in Soelden, Austria, the best Croatian skier Filip Zubcic kicked off his new World Cup season in the giant slalom, a discipline in which he achieved his first victory last season and finished third in the overall standings.

Going into Sunday's performance, Zubcic was second in the FIS giant slalom rankings, behind Frenchman Alexis Pinturault. The 27-year-old from Zagreb said on Saturday he is ready for the traditional opening of the season in Soelden, where he made his debut in the World Cup eight years ago.

"We are expecting a slightly different opening of the season because there will be no audience, no fans. I feel great, I ski well, I believe I am in solid shape, and I can't wait for the season to start," said Zubcic ahead of his 105th appearance in World Cup races.

The Zagreb native shone in the second half of last season, before it was interrupted due to the coronavirus pandemic, when he climbed the podium three times, winning second place in the giant slalom in Adelboden, Switzerland and Hinterstoder, Austria, and achieving his first victory in Naeba, Japan.

Thanks to these results, Filip was third among the giant slalom skiers at the end of the season with 368 points and in the fight for the small crystal globe, and with 475 points, he was 14th in the standings for the big crystal globe.

Reaching full competitive maturity, Zubcic enters this season as one of the favorites for a high place in giant slalom races. He will be able to continue to prove his ski versatility in slalom.

So far, performances in Soelden have not been too lucky for Zubcic because he was only once in the second run and among the points winners. In 2015, he finished in 12th place. He failed to qualify for the second run three times, and twice he was left without a place in the first, which was the case last season.

But now, he will also have the advantage of a better starting number, as he would start among the top seven.

"As for my goals, I would like to ski as well as possible in both runs, without calculations. I think that then the result will not be missed," concluded the best Croatian skier.

The first giant slalom run in Soelden was held at 10 am on Sunday, in which Zubcic was solid. 

HRT Screenshot

Namely, the Croatian skier is currently 78 hundredths of a second behind the currently leading Swiss Gino Caviezel, who achieved a time of 1:08.13 with the starting number 12. For a long time, the leader was Slovenian Žan Kranjec, who had the first starting number and achieved a time of 1:08.19.

Croatia's best skier started well and was four-hundredths better than Kranjec in the first pass, but by the second pass, he lost his rhythm and was 1.18 seconds behind. He finally managed to accelerate and finished the first run with 72 hundredths of a second behind Kranjec.

Last season’s big Crystal Globe winner Alexander Aamodt Kilde failed to finish the first run.

The second run is scheduled at 1:15 pm. You can watch the broadcast on HRT 2. 

More soon...

Source: HRT

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

August 14, 2020 - Croatian skiers Filip Zubcic and Istok Rodes have tested positive for the coronavirus. 

HRT reports that Zubcic and Rodes were soon to start preparations with the rest of the Croatia ski team in Switzerland, but are now forced to spend 14 days in self-isolation.

The Croatian skiers felt their first symptoms during fitness training in Delnice. At first, they thought it was a virus, but were tested just in case.

"I felt a little weaker, had a mild fever and headache and I thought it was some kind of summer virus. However, as the coronavirus is current, and we needed to travel with the rest of the national team, I decided to get tested so as not to endanger everyone else," Zubcic said. 

The new World Cup season should start a week before planned, i.e., October 17, with the women's giant slalom in Sölden, Austria. The day after, a giant slalom is scheduled.

The races were moved forward after the Austrian Ski Federation requested and obtained permission from the International Ski Federation (FIS) to ensure the best possible safety conditions for the competitors.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

February 22, 2020 - For the first time in seven years, Croatia has booked the first place spot in the World Cup thanks to the brilliant rally of alpine skier Filip Zubcic. Ivica Kostelic was the last to do so in Kranjska Gora in 2013.

Namely, 24 Sata reports that Filip Zubcic won the giant slalom at the Naeba Ski Resort in Japan after an impressive second run in which he left Marc Odermatt 0.74 hundredths behind in second.

For the first time in his career, Zubcic started from a high 13th position on a very difficult track. The almost summer-like conditions distracted Zubcic in the first run, where he made an error, but still managed 12th place (1:18.21), 1.58 behind first. Only then did Filip gain momentum.

The warm conditions continued in the second run, though Zubcic flew down the slope like never before. He hit every mark on time, locked in a quick speed, and with a significant advantage, took first place and the best time into the finish line (1:19.04).

The last few skiers had over a second advantage over Filip, but he rode so wisely that they did not stand a chance. Moreover, the conditions were even worse during the second run. The last skier to try to bring him down was Norwegian Henrik Kristoffersen, who had a 1.58 advantage, and eventually lost it all to trail 1.14. Second place went to Marco Odermatt, who was 0.74 hundredth behind Zubcic, and third to Tommy Ford (+1.07).

For Zubcic, this is by far the biggest success of his career after coming second in Adelboden and fourth in Garmisch. Croatia also had not seen the first place in the World Cup since 2013 when Ivica Kostelic won in Kranjska Gora!

Filip is also third overall in the giant slalom, just 50 points behind Slovenian Jean Kranjec. By the end of the season, there are three more races left, and the crystal globe trophy is not so far out of reach. Given his incredible form recently and the downfall of some of his competitors, we hope to see the globe in Filip’s hands at the end of the season.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.