Marco Odermatt takes his fourth consecutive giant slalom victory in Val d'Isère in crazy weather conditions. After the race, the man from Nidwalden reveals that he was very lucky and marvels at Luca Aerni's performance.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Marco Odermatt wins the ski thriller in Val d'Isère by a wafer-thin margin ahead of the Austrian duo Feurstein/Brennsteiner.
- After the race, the 27-year-old was relieved and spoke of good luck and a strong team-mate.
- Odermatt also points out that "a lot has been taken for granted" in recent years.
It was "brutal", says Marco Odermatt after his wafer-thin triumph in the giant slalom in Val d'Isère in an interview on "SRF". In a crazy second run, which began in glorious sunshine and with a mega performance from Luca Aerni, the weather changed so drastically that at Odermatt's start, the goalposts were barely visible due to all the snow.
The man from Nidwalden was accordingly surprised that he ended up competing for the podium against his 31-year-old team-mate. "I saw Luca's run and thought: 'Wow, that was incredibly strong'. But I thought I wouldn't have to compete with that today."
A rare misjudgement by the ski dominator, as one skier after another failed to beat Aerni's fastest time. "Three or four skiers ahead of me, I saw that the same two were still first and second. That's why the race was against them after all."
"A lot was taken for granted"
With a lead of 2.49 seconds, Odermatt was ultimately the last skier to throw himself into the snowstorm on the "Face de Bellevarde". And his lead also melted away on the legendary slope. In the end, the 27-year-old only managed to save 0.08 seconds.
Odermatt admitted after the race: "Luck was on my side today. If you lose three seconds, it's easy to lose three or four tenths more, then I'd be far behind."
The man from Nidwalden was accordingly relieved about the victory. "It shows how difficult our sport is. A lot has been taken for granted in recent years. By myself too, not just by the media and fans," says Odermatt - and continues: "It's clear from what's happened in recent years that it can't just go on like this, win after win, for the next few years. That's why such close victories are also very good."
