The Women's Alpine Ski World Cup returns to Val di Fassa for the third time in 2026
The downhill race will take place on Saturday 7 March and the super-G on Sunday 8 March. The Ski Cross World Cup will also return to the San Pellegrino Ski Area on Friday 30 and Saturday 31 January
Val di Fassa doubles up in the Olympic season. The International Ski Federation has awarded the Trentino Organising Committee the Women's World Cup for Saturday 7 March 2026, with a downhill race on the "La VolatA" slope, and Sunday 8 March with a super-G. And that's not all: after last winter's successful experiment with the Ski Cross World Cup, the acrobatic discipline will be back with two challenges scheduled for Friday 30 January and Saturday 31 January in the tried and tested Park Monzoni, also in the San Pellegrino Ski Area. This will be the last test for the discipline before the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympic Games, while the two alpine skiing events represent the second stage after the challenges in Cortina d'Ampezzo.
Val di Fassa confirms its status as the home of major events and great champions. A sporting history that has seen the slopes of the Ladin valley as the official training centre for the champion known as Alberto Tomba, followed in those years by coach Gustavo Thoeni, but also over 40 European Cup slalom, super-G, downhill and ski cross races, the 2013 Universiade, the 2019 Junior World Championships, a three-day Women's World Cup downhill and super-G in 2021, the unfortunate 2024 edition, again with the speed disciplines cancelled due to too much snow, the debut with the top Ski Cross circuit in February 2025, not to mention that the first appearance dates back to 2004, on the Aloch slope in San Giovanni di Fassa, albeit in a non-Olympic format. And then how can we forget the “Piste Azzurre” project, which will celebrate its 20th anniversary this year and which sees the Val di Fassa slopes as the training centre for the FISI national alpine skiing teams in all disciplines, from the World Cup teams to the youth teams.
The double World Cup event will be made possible thanks to extraordinary teamwork, as is always the case with major events in Trentino, with Val di Fassa Grandi Eventi in the control room, the three ski clubs operating in the area, Ski Team Fassa, Us Monti Pallidi and FassActive Asd, as well as the five ski schools Moena Dolomiti, Vajolet Pozza di Fassa, Vigo di Fassa and Passo Costalunga, Canazei Marmolada and Campitello, the San Pellegrino Ski Area, the Val di Fassa Tourist Board and Trentino Marketing.
CHANGES TO THE "LA VOLATA" SLOPE
For the return of the Women's Alpine Ski World Cup, which is scheduled to take place from 4 to 6 March, with the downhill on Saturday 7 March and the super-G on Sunday 8 March, the La VolatA slope will undergo some changes in terms of safety and accessibility. As requested by World Cup Director General Peter Gerdol, the type of snow surface and barring used in 2024 will be replicated, creating deformations, new jumps and different markings with the aim of slowing down the speed of the athletes at certain points. The two starts will also be raised to an altitude of 2,510 metres, just outside the cable car, for the downhill, while the start of the super-G will be set at 2,480 metres, with relative backup options. As for the finish area, work began in September to expand the parking and finish areas to improve logistics and services. In addition, race director Mattia Giongo and his staff are finalising a comprehensive emergency plan, which includes intervention procedures both on the track and in terms of traffic management, depending on weather conditions.
FIS has also decided that Val di Fassa, like Soldeu, has been chosen as the location for any races postponed in the first part of the season.
In terms of results, in the only edition held in 2021, Lara Gut Behrami from the Swiss canton of Ticino won both downhill races, on the first day ahead of Austria's Ramona Siebenhofer and her teammate Corinne Suter, and the following morning ahead of Corinne Suter and Germany's Kira Weidle, with Italy's Laura Pirovano finishing fifth, 79 hundredths of a second behind the leader. The Trentino skier also finished eighth in the first downhill race. It was a memorable race for Italy in the super-G, with Federica Brignone from Valle d'Aosta winning the race thanks to a flawless performance, finishing ahead of Lara Gut Behrami and Corinne Suter. Then came a trio of Italian skiers with Elena Curtoni fourth, Francesca Marsaglia fifth and Marta Bassino sixth.
THE "LA VOLATA" SLOPE UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT
The La VolatA slope was inaugurated in 2017. Built for the Junior World Championships held two years later, it is particularly suitable for international women's speed competitions, thanks to its 2,400-metre length, average gradient of 28.4%, maximum gradient of 47% and 600-metre vertical drop. It is a black run that descends steeply from the 2,510-metre start area, just below the Col Margherita chairlift arrival point, towards Passo San Pellegrino, where the finish line is located at 1,880 metres. The duration of the race descent is approximately 1 minute and 20 seconds. It is located in the ski area of the same name and its name takes its initials from Alberto Vendruscolo, a true pioneer of skiing in this area of Trentino.
The super-G course starts from a porphyritic terrace overlooking the splendid panorama of the Pale di San Martino. After the start, the competitors immediately face a 190-metre wall, which turns slightly to the right, called "Muro Alberto", where it is necessary to pick up speed because, along the next 200 metres of the "Pian del Fabion", it is easy to lose hundredths of a second. This is followed by the first significant change in gradient to tackle the 280 metres of the "Muro Manfroi", which features a significant left turn. Next, there is a slight deviation to the right to tackle the 410 metres of "La Piana". Then comes the crucial point, with a sharp left turn where maximum concentration and interpretation of the lines on the "Muri del Poeta" (Poet's Walls) are required. This is the section with the greatest difference in altitude and 1,000 metres in length, before reaching the "Dosso del Camoscio" (Chamois Hill), where the last 880 metres leading to the finish line begin, near the valley station of the cable car.
TICKETS: GRANDSTAND TICKETS AVAILABLE FROM DECEMBER, FREE IN THE PARTERRE
To watch the two-day World Cup event in Val di Fassa, grandstand tickets will be available for purchase online from mid-December. Ticket prices: €20 full price, €10 reduced price for children up to 12 years of age, while access to the large parterre will be free.
There is also a special package with 50 exclusive seats, which includes front row access and entry to the VIP area on the parterre of La Volata, called the Ladin Lounge.
Media accreditations will also be available on the Event Builder online platform from December 2025.
The Ski Cross World Cup
the last challenge before the 2026 Olympics
After last winter's organisational success, the Ski Cross World Cup returns to Val di Fassa, in the San Pellegrino Ski Area, for two new spectacular stages of the international circuit. The event is organised by Val di Fassa Grandi Eventi, together with Funivie Catinaccio, with technical support from Unione Sportiva Monti Pallidi di Moena and the collaboration of local ski clubs Ski Team Fassa and FassActive. The event will take place on the Park Monzoni slope, the official training venue for the FISI national teams thanks to the "Piste Azzurre" project, which has been running since 2006. According to statistics, next February's World Cup event will be the third in history to be organised in Val di Fassa, given that the first appearance dates back to 2004, on the Aloch slope in San Giovanni di Fassa, albeit in a non-Olympic format.
On Friday 30th and Saturday 31st January, the sixth and seventh races of the season will take place, the last test before the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympic Games. Qualifications are scheduled for Wednesday 28th and Thursday 29th January, with training sessions and elimination rounds leading up to the final stages. The races will be broadcast live on Eurosport, Rai Sport and ARD.
The 1,300-metre-long track with a 180-metre vertical drop was designed by Dario Dellantonio (track director), Mattia Giongo (race director) and local technicians. Treacherous curves, jumps of up to 30 metres and combined sections in rapid succession shape a timed challenge that promises fast pace and twists and turns right up to the finish line. Park Monzoni will include a total of five turns, two 25-30 metre jumps and various features, specifically a "step down", a "step up", a "dragon" and various structures composed of multiple "rollers". Compared to last year, FIS has requested that the last turn be eliminated, making the finish line a straight line to give greater visibility to the public and television requirements, as well as for the safety of the athletes.
Park Monzoni also features sections of the track with specific territorial names, such as the Tobia jump immediately after the start, named after the track builder, then after the first turn and the negative in the centre of the course is the Pelin Jump, the most spectacular jump, followed by the Dragon, the Massimo Turn and the Corner Jump before the finish straight.
As per the knockout format rules (KO system), four competitors will face each other per heat: only the top two will advance to the next round. Speeds can exceed 100 km/h, in a mix of precision, strategy and athletic power.
The home crowd is already ready to support their favourites. Among the most eagerly awaited protagonists are Jole Galli, the reigning Italian champion, who won her first World Cup victory on the Monzoni; Simone Deromedis (Fiamme Gialle), second in the overall ranking and on the podium last February in race 2; and Federico Tomasoni, the national title holder.
Spectators can reach the competition area by taking the Costabella four-seater chairlift directly from Passo San Pellegrino. Even those who do not ski can watch the competition: from the top station, it is possible to walk down a dedicated path that leads to the finish area, located 600 metres further down the valley, at the edge of the track. A promotional lift ticket is available for Friday and Saturday, while access to the side of the piste and the parterre is free.
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