Longines Hits The Slopes With Marco Odermatt
In March 2023, in the tiny Pyrenean principality of Andorra, Marco Odermatt stood at the finish line of the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Finals. There, he held aloft the Crystal Globe trophy, the competition’s most coveted prize. The then-25-year-old Swiss Olympian had just clinched a win in his final race of the season — the giant slalom — and taken first place with a substantial 2.11-second lead over his closest rival. The victory catapulted Odermatt’s overall season score to 2,042 points, edging him past the previous record of 2,000 points set by Austrian legend Hermann Maier more than two decades ago. The win, then, earned Odermatt a place in the snow-dusted record books — and has since been immortalized on the back of his new namesake watch, the Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt.
The Swiss-made chronograph is Odermatt’s first foray into watch design — an area the multi-event skier and Longines sports ambassador admits he didn’t know much about before entering into the collaboration. “To be honest, the only experience I had with mechanical watches was wearing them,” he tells SHARP. “I’ve always liked the style and look, but I had never really wondered about the specifics that go into making one.”
Fortunately, the sportsman had the benefit of strong source material in the latest Longines Conquest models, a new line of 42 mm chronographs that celebrates the brand’s long history of elegant steel sports watches. “In projects like these, it’s usually a very collaborative approach between me and the partner,” he says of the design process, which came to a head at Longines’s Swiss headquarters. “Longines came with an idea and I shared my thoughts and ideas. We got there jointly, and I think it delivered a great result.”
“As a skier, red is directly associated with the red bib worn by the leader of a discipline. This element just makes the watch that little bit more special.”
Marco Odermatt
The watch itself combines the Conquest’s modern-vintage aesthetic with details that speak to the skier’s own accomplishments, including the phrase “ONE OF 2042” engraved into the case, along with the Crystal Globe emblem of the Alpine Ski World Cup on the watch’s transparent back. “To me, it’s not one particular element, but the number of details that make this watch so special,” says Odermatt. “Some are visible, but most of them are hidden. That notion of secrecy is very cool.”
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
In addition to these hidden details, the Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt also combines a blue sunray dial and matching ceramic tachymetric bezel with polished silver hands, while red-accented hour markers, counters, and the strap’s red and white stitching pay homage to Odermatt’s native Swiss Alps. “Coming from the Swiss canton of Nidwalden, red is a colour that means a lot,” says Odermatt, alluding to the distinctive flags of both his home province and his country. “As a skier, red is directly associated with the red bib worn by the leader of a discipline. This element just makes the watch that little bit more special.”
This partnership is the latest milestone in Longines’s long history with competitive skiing, which also counts American World Cup alpine skier Mikaela Shiffrin, and French World Cup alpine ski racer Clément Noël among its ambassadors. The watchmaker has also been the official timekeeper of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) since 2006, and Longines’s participation in the sport dates back to the 1920s, when the brand timed a military race in its hometown of Saint-Imier, Switzerland.
“Alpine skiing has been part of our brand’s history since 1924, and we are delighted to continue our active role in the development of this sport,” says Longines CEO Matthias Breschan. “Athletes like Marco Odermatt are the embodiment of the sporting principles of Longines — precision and determination on the slopes with engaging personalities — perfectly representing the brand’s elegance.”
Befitting a sport where a fraction of a second can mean the difference between victory and defeat, the new watch is driven by the highly precise automatic Longines L898.5 movement, exclusive to the Conquest. Equipped with a silicon balance spring, and other components that give it 10 times more magnetic resistance than standard anti-magnetic watches, it is both reliable and durable, with a power reserve of up to 59 hours.
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
Longines Conquest Marco Odermatt
A year after his record-breaking win, Odermatt once again took the top spot at the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Finals in Saalbach, Austria. After chasing last year’s record-breaking points tally all season, Odermatt was in striking distance of eclipsing his 2,042-point record when the final race was cancelled due to inclement weather. After taking the top spot in the giant slalom, super-G, downhill, and overall categories in 2024, however, Odermatt joined the elite club of skiers to win four globes in a single season — the first man to do so since Maier in 2001. It was a bittersweet end to what was on track to be the skier’s best-ever season, but Marco Odermatt still has plenty left to achieve.
“[Last year’s results] show that I was able to compete at a very high level over an entire season, and that makes me very proud,” says Odermatt. “It’s one thing to perform over two or three weeks, but it’s another thing to perform over a five-month season.” But, regardless of Odermatt’s impressive performance on the slopes this season, his partnership with Longines — and the handsome watch it has produced — is accomplishment enough.
