| bgcolor=#b0c4de colspan=2 align="center" | Rettenbach | |
|---|---|---|
| Place: |  Sölden, Tyrol | |
| Mountain: | Wildspitze, Ötztal Alps | |
| Opened: | 1993 | |
| bgcolor=#b0c4de colspan=2 align="center" | Giant slalom | |
| Start: | 3040m (9,970feet) (AA) | |
| Finish: | 2670m (8,760feet) | |
| Vertical drop: | 370m (1,210feet) | |
| Level: | expert | |
| Max. incline: | 34.3 degrees (68.2%) | |
| Most wins (M): |  Ted Ligety (4x) | |
| Most wins (L): | Tina Maze (3x) |
Rettenbach is a World Cup giant slalom ski course in Austria on Rettenbach glacier above Sölden, Tyrol. Located on Wildspitze mountain in the Ötztal Alps, the race course debuted in 1993.
This course hosted total of 21 World Cup events for men (19th of all-time) and total 24 World Cup events for women (19th of all-time).
Since 2000, it is the traditional opener for the World Cup season, with a giant slalom for both genders in late October; previously, it had alternated with Tignes, France, from 1993 on.[1]
The women's race in October 2002 was one of only two triple wins in World Cup history, as Andrine Flemmen (NOR), Nicole Hosp (AUT), and Tina Maze (SLO) shared first place.
The races start at an elevation of 3040m (9,970feet) above the Adriatic (sea level) and finish at 2670m (8,760feet), yielding a vertical drop of 370m (1,210feet).
This slope is widely regarded as the most difficult giant slalom on the women's circuit, with a maximum gradient of 68.2 percent (34.3 degrees) at "Eisfall".[1]
| Date | Winner | Second | Third | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 794 | 30 October 1993 | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 896 | 27 October 1996 |  Kjetil André Aamodt | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 970 | 25 October 1998 | Heinz Schilchegger | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1045 | 29 October 2000 |  Fredrik Nyberg | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1078 | 28 October 2001 | Michael von Grünigen Fredrik Nyberg | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1113 | 27 October 2002 | Michael von Grünigen | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1150 | 26 October 2003 |  Joël Chenal | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1189 | 24 October 2004 |  Kalle Palander | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1225 | 23 October 2005 | Rainer Schönfelder | ||
| align=right bgcolor="F5F5DC" | 29 October 2006 | cancelled | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1298 | 28 October 2007 | Kalle Palander | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1338 | 26 October 2008 | Ted Ligety | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1374 | 25 October 2009 | Carlo Janka | ||
| 24 October 2010 | cancelled after 1st run due to fog and wind | ||||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1444 | 23 October 2011 | Philipp Schörghofer | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1488 | 28 October 2012 | Marcel Hirscher | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1522 | 27 October 2013 | Marcel Hirscher | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1556 | 26 October 2014 | Alexis Pinturault | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1593 | 25 October 2015 | Marcel Hirscher | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1637 | 23 October 2016 | Felix Neureuther | ||
| align=right bgcolor="F5F5DC" rowspan=2 | 29 October 2017 | cancelled due to excessive high winds | |||
| 28 October 2018 | heavy snowfall and excessive high winds; rescheduled to Saalbach-Hinterglemm | ||||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1749 | 27 October 2019 | Žan Kranjec | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1783 | 18 October 2020 | Gino Caviezel | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1818 | 24 October 2021 | Žan Kranjec | ||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1855 | 23 October 2022 | Henrik Kristoffersen | ||
| align=right bgcolor="F5F5DC" | 29 October 2023 | cancelled due to strong winds after 47 skiers had run |
| Date | Winner | Second | Third | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 736 | 31 October 1993 | Carole Merle | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 836 | 26 October 1996 | Hilde Gerg | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 901 | 24 October 1998 |  Deborah Compagnoni | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 977 | 28 October 2000 | Anja Pärson | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1011 | 27 October 2001 | Régine Cavagnoud | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1045 | 26 October 2002 | ||||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1078 | 25 October 2003 |  María José Rienda Contreras | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1113 | 23 October 2004 | María José Rienda Contreras | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1146 | 22 October 2005 | Anja Pärson | |||
| align=right bgcolor="F5F5DC" | 28 October 2006 | cancelled | ||||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1217 | 27 October 2007 | Kathrin Zettel | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1252 | 25 October 2008 | Andrea Fischbacher | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1286 | 24 October 2009 | Denise Karbon | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1318 | 23 October 2010 | Manuela Mölgg | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1351 | 22 October 2011 | Elisabeth Görgl | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1388 | 27 October 2012 | ||||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1423 | 26 October 2013 |  Viktoria Rebensburg | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1455 | 25 October 2014 | Eva-Maria Brem | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1487 | 24 October 2015 |  Tina Weirather | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1527 | 22 October 2016 | Marta Bassino | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1564 | 28 October 2017 | ||||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1602 | 27 October 2018 | Mikaela Shiffrin | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1637 | 26 October 2019 | Tessa Worley | |||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1667 | 17 October 2020 | ||||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1698 | 23 October 2021 |  Petra Vlhová | |||
| align=right bgcolor="F5F5DC" | 22 October 2022 | snowfall and poor visibility | ||||
| align=right bgcolor="#EFEFEF" | 1773 | 28 October 2023 | Petra Vlhová |
On January 5, 2015, two prospects of the United States Ski Team, Ronnie Berlack and Bryce Astle, were killed by an avalanche they triggered near Rettenbach glacier.[2]
On 17 November 2015, Slovenian ex skier Drago Grubelnik died in a car accident on the seventh curve (elevation 2455m (8,054feet)) on the road descending to Sölden, not far below the World Cup finish area.[3]