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Although Marco Odermatt swings away in fourth in Bormio…
A few hours after Beat Feuz’s resignation, Austria’s head coach Marko Pfeifer couldn’t resist a verbal jab at Swiss Ski. “When the beat stops, the Swiss will not have much to offer in the speed sector apart from the Odermatt!”
But then our downhill skiers prove the Austria boss wrong in what is probably the toughest race of the winter. Although Feuz and Niels Hintermann, who came third last year, also declared forfeit due to flu, Odermatt (4th), Urs Kryenbühl (6th), Justin Murisier (7th) and Gilles Roulin (8th) ranked on the completely icy, “Stelvio” hit four ski comrades in the top 8 with heavy blows.
Marco Odermatt therefore has a broad grin on his face, even though he missed his tenth podium this winter. “I’m really happy about the performance of Urs, Justin and Gilles. They recently had to take heavy blows, now they are being rewarded for their grandiose fighting spirit. Absolutely awesome!»
Kryenbühl has matured through the setbacks
A particularly difficult time lies behind the Schwyzer Kryenbühl. After the horror departure in January 2021 in Kitzbühel (concussion, cruciate ligament rupture and broken collarbone), he also broke his pelvis in the European Cup in Saalbach almost eleven months ago.
But now the 29-year-old is back in impressive fashion among the world elite on the slopes, where he finished second in 2019 and third in 2020. “Due to the many setbacks, I’ve matured as a person and have also got to know my body better,” emphasizes Kryenbühl, who has been vegan for around two years. “In the meantime, however, I have deviated from my strict menu plan. I’m now a «flexitarian». I eat mainly vegetarian. But when I feel my body craving meat, I give it that too.”
Odermatt’s golden input
The 1.72 meter man, who grew up in Unteriberg like Wendy Holdener, also gets a lot of strength from his great love Nadine. Last summer he married the teacher. When Kryenbühl started his hussar ride over the “Stelvio” with the start number 26, the wife trembled in the finish area. «Nadine is always brutally nervous when I contest a race. But this time I was also extremely restless before the start because I didn’t have enough grip in the training sessions on this slope.”
The fact that Kryenbühl feels a lot better in the race than in the rehearsal is also due to Marco Odermatt. «Marco told me after training that he would change something due to the extreme conditions in the shoe area. That’s what I did, although I don’t usually like to make last-minute changes when it comes to shoes.”
Despite the strong Swiss team performance, Austria’s head coach Marko Pfeifer can also be happy at the end of the day – double world champion Vincent Kriechmayer gives his team their second win of the season. And the Carinthian bows to Kryenbühl and Co. in retrospect: “The second Swiss guard really impressed me. Congratulations!”
Attention ski fans! Now quiz and type races
The 2022/2023 ski season is coming up and with it the “Blick Ski Trophy”: answer questions every day, type ski races and crown yourself as ski champion. Lots of great prizes await.
To take part in the “Blick Ski Trophy”, you have to register here.
Have fun and good luck!
The 2022/2023 ski season is coming up and with it the “Blick Ski Trophy”: answer questions every day, type ski races and crown yourself as ski champion. Lots of great prizes await.
To take part in the “Blick Ski Trophy”, you have to register here.
Have fun and good luck!