Odermatt becomes Switzerland's most successful male skier with another GS win on the Gran Risa

LA VILLA, Italy (AP) — Marco Odermatt is back to his imperious best.

Odermatt followed up his first win in Val Gardena in Saturday’s downhill by winning a World Cup giant slalom on Sunday as he continued to dominate the Gran Risa to become Switzerland's most successful male skier.

It was Odermatt’s 41st World Cup victory, putting the three-time defending overall champion one above Pirmin Zurbriggen for wins for the Swiss men's team. Vreni Schneider holds the overall record for her country with 55.

“This is crazy now,” Odermatt said. “To be here the best Swiss alpine skier ever ... Pirmin Zurbriggen is the biggest legend we have in Swiss skiing history so this is a very special moment.”

Odermatt was third fastest in a tricky first run in Alta Badia but was much more aggressive in the second to make it back-to-back GS wins after a difficult start to the season.

“I think every run is different down here,” Odermatt said. “Today, in the morning it was very difficult with the changing conditions and insane run. I felt better already after the inspection. I saw that on the ground is better, so I knew I can ski my plan, I can attack, it’s less dangerous.”

Odermatt beat Léo Anguenot by 0.85 seconds. The Frenchman also had a strong second run to rise from ninth to clinch his first World Cup podium finish. Anguenot had never placed inside the top 10 before.

Alexander Steen Olsen was third, 0.88 behind Odermatt and just ahead of first-run leader Filip Zubcic.

Olympic champion Odermatt has now won five of the past six GS races on the Gran Risa. Only Lucas Pinheiro Braathen has interrupted that streak.

However, Odermatt had appeared uncharacteristically beatable in his favorite discipline this year.

Odermatt won the first nine of 10 giant slalom races last season on his way to a third straight crystal globe in the discipline as well as a third straight overall title.

But the Swiss standout then failed to finish the final event in March and the first two races of the new season before finally picking up his first GS points with a win in Val d’Isère last weekend.

The Gran Risa is already one of the toughest courses on the circuit and it was made even more difficult by flat light, while there were also plenty of ruts and bumps on the course — although that was improved between the first and second run.

“I know that I’m strong in this condition, when it’s tough, when it’s a fight, when you have to ski smart,” Odermatt said.

Henrik Kristoffersen called it “dangerous” and “really bad” after the first run, adding: “maybe we shouldn’t have skied today, that was my feeling.”

Kristoffersen was fourth fastest after the first run but dropped to ninth.

Odermatt moved a point above Kristoffersen into top spot in the GS standings and extended his lead in the overall standings to 121 points above the Norwegian.

There is a slalom on Monday also in Alta Badia before the men's circuit moves to Bormio for speed events.

Switzerland's Marco Odermatt, center, winner of an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, celebrates with second-placed France's Leo Anguenot, left, and third-placed Norway's Alexander Steen Olsen, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandro Trovati)

Switzerland's Marco Odermatt, center, winner of an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, celebrates with second-placed France's Leo Anguenot, left, and third-placed Norway's Alexander Steen Olsen, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandro Trovati)

Switzerland's Marco Odermatt celebrates with the team after winning an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandro Trovati)

Switzerland's Marco Odermatt celebrates on the podium after winning an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandro Trovati)

France's Leo Anguenot speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandro Trovati)

France's Leo Anguenot celebrates at the finish area of an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandro Trovati)

France's Leo Anguenot celebrates at the finish area of an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandro Trovati)

Switzerland's Marco Odermatt checks his time at the finish area of an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Switzerland's Marco Odermatt speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Switzerland's Marco Odermatt celebrates at the finish area of an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

The Italian Frecce Tricolori acrobatic squad flies past ahead of an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandro Trovati)

Brazil's Lucas Pinheiro Braathen concentrates ahead of an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Croatia's Filip Zubcic speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Switzerland's Marco Odermatt speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

Switzerland's Marco Odermatt speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)

ADEN, Yemen (AP) — Southern separatists in Yemen said Saudi warplanes carried out new airstrikes Saturday on a military camp in the port city of Mukalla and other areas where their forces are stationed, as Saudi-backed forces moved to retake the city.

There was no immediate Saudi comment. It was the latest direct intervention by Saudi Arabia, which in recent weeks has bombed the separatist Southern Transitional Council, or STC, and struck what is said was a shipment of Emirati weapons destined for it.

The Saudi strikes hit Barshid Brigade camp west of Mukalla in Hadramout, one of two governorates seized last month by the STC, according to the group’s AIC satellite news channel.

Yemen has been engulfed in civil war for more than a decade, with Iran-backed Houthi rebels controlling much of the north and a Saudi-led coalition supporting the internationally recognized government in the south. But coalition member the United Arab Emirates also supports the separatists, who call for South Yemen to secede again from Yemen.

The latest Saudi strikes came a day after the separatist movement announced a constitution for an independent nation in the south.

Last month, the STC moved into Hadramout and Mahra and seized an oil-rich region. That pushed out allies of the Saudi-supported National Shield forces, a group in the anti-Houthi coalition.

After Saudi pressure and an ultimatum from anti-Houthi forces to withdraw from Yemen, the UAE said early Saturday it had pulled out all its forces.

The tensions in Yemen have further strained ties between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, neighbors on the Arabian Peninsula that have competed over economic issues and regional politics, particularly in the Red Sea area. Ostensibly, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have shared the coalition's professed goal of restoring Yemen's internationally recognized government.

An official with the STC told The Associated Press on Saturday that more than 100 Saudi airstrikes struck multiple locations across Hadramout over the past 24 hours, resulting in deaths and injuries. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to brief the media.

Mukalla residents Ahmed al-Faradi and Salem Maadan told the AP the city was now controlled by the Hadramout Tribes Confederacy and the National Shield forces.

Col. Ahmed Baqatyan, a military commander in the Hadramout Tribes Confederacy, said that striking the Barshid Brigade camp was necessary because it sits on the route to the southern port city of Aden. He said clearing the camp of STC forces was aimed at preventing them from regrouping and launching a return to Mukalla.

Meanwhile, Yemen’s Transportation Ministry, aligned with the STC, condemned Saudi airstrikes late Friday it said targeted the international airport in Seiyun, “exposing the airport to serious risks that could damage its infrastructure, hindering its operation and the resumption of flights.”

Earlier on Saturday, Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry said it plans to hold a conference in its capital, Riyadh, to bring together all southern factions in Yemen "to discuss just solutions to the southern cause."

Saudi Arabia was responding to a request for dialogue from Rashad al-Alimi, head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, the ruling organ of the internationally recognized government.

There were no immediate details about the proposed conference.

The anti-Houthi coalition was showing other signs of strain. Clashes erupted on Friday between National Shield forces and the southern forces in Hadramout and their allies, killing at least eight people, paramedic Ahmed al-Ketheri told the AP.

Hilal Khashan, political science professor at the American University of Beirut, said that when Saudi Arabia and the UAE began a military operation against the Houthis a decade ago, the Saudis were interested in controlling the mountains of Saada, while the UAE wanted to capture Aden because of its importance as a gateway to the Red Sea.

Khashan said the situation got out of control in recent weeks when the UAE-backed STC started capturing areas in Hadramout that border the kingdom.

“For the Saudis that was a red line,” Khashan said, adding that the Saudis felt that they were being “held captive between the Houthis in the north and the UAE in the south.” They ”decided to stop the UAE from its regional expansionism," he said.

Khaled reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.

Supporters of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a coalition of separatist groups seeking to restore the state of South Yemen, hold South Yemen flags during a rally, in Aden, Yemen, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo)