Mélanie Meillard (24) wants to continue fighting after the crash
From great skiing hope to World Cup spectator
She tries everything but doesn’t really get going: Mélanie Meillard (24). The World Cup takes place without them. She doesn’t yet know what will happen next.
Published: 19 minutes ago
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Mélanie Meillard finished 24th in the second slalom in Spindleruv Mlyn, but clearly missed qualifying for the World Championships.
Mathias Germannreporter sports
Do you remember February 2018? FC Basel was the reigning champion and cup winner. In the National League, SC Bern drew lonely circles at the top of the table and Marco Odermatt’s top result in the World Cup was 17th place. Above all, Mélanie Meillard was seen as the upcoming women’s ski star. When she was only 19, she traveled to the Olympic Games in Pyeongchang (SKor) as one of the hopefuls – no wonder, since the Valais native, who was born in Neuchâtel, had proven her talent a few days earlier by coming fourth in the World Cup slalom in Lenzerheide GR.
Meillard had nothing to lose and was eyeing an Olympic medal. But the ski god didn’t stick to the hoped-for script. On the contrary. The Winter Games in South Korea ended in disaster for Meillard – she tore the cruciate ligament in her left knee during training. “I’ll be back soon,” Meillard wrote on Instagram. She should be wrong.
Her knee knocked out the inserted tendon of a dead man, Meillard suffered for months and had to undergo another operation. She lost two years. Or more. Because: Other minor injuries followed and with them mental hurdles that she could not overcome. Today Meillard is 24 years old. She is still fighting for her skiing dream. “It’s a tough season,” she says this time too. And of course he’s right.
The best run of the winter
Meillard competed in 13 World Cup races this season, retiring ten times or missing the second run. Her top placing: 17th in the slalom in Levi (Fi). She was far from qualifying for the World Cup in France (from February 6th). “The World Cup was already a goal before the winter,” she openly admits. Meillard is only to blame for the fact that it didn’t work out. Her left knee still reacts to stress from time to time, but that’s no excuse. “I didn’t qualify. It’s my fault,” she says.
After all: In Spindlermühle (Tsch) Meillard showed what she’s capable of in the first round on Sunday. 15th place – it was her best run of the winter. After that, however, it fell nine places, finishing 24th. “I showed that I can still do it,” she says. Meillard does not yet know what she will do during the World Cup – she wants to draw up a plan with the coaches. “I’ll keep my fingers crossed for my brother Loïc that it works with a medal. And I hope that one day I’ll be in a position like that.”