Skiing: Why Alice Robinson's latest World Cup Super G result is so big

Alice Robinson celebrates during the World Cup Super G event St Moritz, Switzerland. Photo / Getty Images

When Alice Robinson won the opening World Cup Giant Slalom of the season in Solden in Austria in 2019, her incredible performance barely registered in New Zealand.

The 17-year-old's victory was quite possibly the greatest performance by a New Zealander in alpine skiing, yes better than Annelise Coberger's silver medal at the 1992 Winter Olympics.

The problem was timing. Robinson's debut victory on the World Cup circuit came a couple of hours after the All Blacks had been beaten by England in the 2019 Rugby World Cup semifinals and coverage in New Zealand largely got lost.

A similar thing happened yesterday when Robinson finished fourth in the third World Cup Super G race of the season at St Moritz in Switzerland.

For those who follow the sport, it was an incredible result and although not on the podium, I would argue it was as significant as her remarkable win as a teenager in Solden. Again, the timing wasn't great. The Formula One championship had just witnessed its closest most controversial finish to a season in the history of the sport and Robinson's feats were overshadowed.

Super G is arguably the most difficult of Alpine skiing disciplines, speed takes more time to learn than Giant Slalom and Slalom because it's not just about putting the ski on the edge and bending it.

There are skills like jumping and gliding that have to be learned, the speeds are higher (Robinson clocked close to 100kph in Monday's run). Imagine strapping yourself to the roof of the car and going along the motorway at 100 kph, you would get an idea of just how fast skiers go.

Downhill is faster still but the big difference is the competitors get several days of training runs on the slope before each race. In Super G they only see the course once before skiing it and there are so many dangers of risk with speed that you don't see necessarily when you are inspecting the course.

What makes Robinson's performance even more remarkable is her age. Having just turned 20, she was by far the youngest competitor in the 56 strong field where the average age was about 28 and the next youngest, American Superstar Mikaela Shiffrin at 26. The Kiwi was only contesting her 9th World Cup Super G and unlike her rivals had only ever raced the hill once before, the previous day where she finished 24th. So, in effect that was a training run and Robinson proved what a quick learner she is.

Alpine Ski racing is huge in Europe where every race in every discipline in both men and women is broadcast live on television, particularly in the powerhouse countries of Austria, Switzerland, Italy and France but also through Scandinavia. Granted it's more difficult here due to the time difference with Europe and the races are held late at night.

But there was a breakthrough in October when Robinson's season opening World Cup GS in Austria was shown on Sky here. But the deal is only for her Austrian races and not the entire World Cup circuit. Still, it's a start and there's hope now she shapes as being a genuine contender in two disciplines, coverage will grow.

Like Pyeongchang in 2018 where snowboarder Zoi Sadowski-Synott and free skier Nico Porteous won there bronze medals as 16 years olds for New Zealand, the Beijing Games will be in a good time slot for New Zealand viewers.

The five-hour time difference will mean Robinson's races will be held during the late afternoon or early evening here, providing a chance for sport's fans to see just how good the Queenstown skier is.