Joan Verdú records first DNF after clipping gate in Beaver Creek giant slalom

Joan Verdú failed to finish the giant slalom at Beaver Creek after clipping a gate in a technical, high‑speed section of the second run, causing him to leave the course and record his first DNF of the season.

Verdú had completed the opening run in 1:10.62, initially placing 14th on the provisional leaderboard before later starters pushed him back to 20th. His first sector in that run was among the day’s best — 0.02 seconds quicker than the provisional leader’s split — and he remained competitive through the second sector (+0.38) but lost time in the third (+0.57) and fourth (+0.89).

With bibs inverted for the second run, Verdú started 11th and adopted an aggressive approach to climb into the top 10. He reached the first intermediate only marginally behind the leaders and recorded the fastest opening sector among those who had gone, but in a demanding part of the second sector he clipped a gate, left the track and was forced to abandon.

“Tough day at Beaver Creek. The first run was pretty good overall and there were many positives,” Verdú said. “In the second I had to go for it and on one gate I went straight. A pity, but we keep trusting and working, taking the good things and moving on.”

Verdú’s early‑season form remains solid: he finished 12th in Sölden and 16th in Copper Mountain and sits on 37 points in the giant slalom World Cup standings. The circuit moves on to Val d’Isère on Saturday, a venue where he reached the podium in 2023 and placed seventh last year.