Alpine skiing: Austrians fight for a chance to get a ball

21 races before the end of the season, the ÖSV is heading for the first season without a crystal ball since 1994/95. The men last remained without a bullet in 2010/11, when Marlies Schild jumped into the breach as a slalom winner. The ÖSV women last remained without a precious crystal in 2017/18 – but Marcel Hirscher drove, who secured the overall, slalom and RTL rating.

Men’s boss Andreas Puelacher would have no joy with a ball-less season. “Of course, something else would be bad. But we would simply not be satisfied with our sport. ”Negativeism that hurries ahead seems foreign to the Tyrolean. “The goal of the speed team was a ball, and we’re still in the game.” After Hinterstoder, Super G decisions are still on the agenda in Kvitfjell and Cortina.

“Nothing is lost yet”

“If I just look at Matthias, he’s driving a top season,” said Puelacher. In fact, Mayer (Lake Louise) and Kriechmayr (Val Gardena) won two of only five individual victories in men and women in this discipline. There were also two third places in the Super-G by the two and a second place by Mayer. According to Puelacher, the Carinthian Olympic champion also has consistency this time, which many had denied. Only a flu illness after the victory on the Streif threw him back.

“The return to Saalbach was of course quite at the limit, I noticed a few things,” said Mayer looking back at eleventh place in the downhill and his failure in the Super-G. This is very painful given his ambitions for the ball – Mayer is 72 points behind Kilde. “But it is not yet lost. If we want to have a chance at the crystal ball, it would be important that there is no more cancellation. ”

Home advantage should “make sense”

In Hinterstoder there is a technically demanding Super-G with many transitions and some waves in the lower, flatter part. “You have to be a complete skier to be fast here,” said local hero Kriechmayr, who is 74 points behind the top. Not only does he know the Hannes-Trinkl route inside out. “Our whole team knows the slope very well, we were the only nation to train there last week. We should already show that it made sense. “

Kilde is in impressive shape, said Puelacher. “But something can happen to that too.” With “Big Points” in the home race, his charges are back in the game. “Matthias and Vinz can get it.” The Super-G crystal ball would be the first in a speed discipline for the ÖSV men since Klaus Kröll 2011/12 in the downhill.

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