20th place in Levi, 30th place in Gurgl and then five "zeros" in a row: Ramon Zenhäusern is not getting up to speed this season. The 32-year-old from Valais is looking for a way out of his misery.
20.01.2025, 16:42
20.01.2025, 16:49
SDA
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- No World Cup points again: Ramon Zenhäusern is only 43rd in the Wengen slalom.
- The six-time World Cup winner admits that he is lacking a bit of bite at the moment. However, he can't really explain his slump in form.
- However, the 32-year-old is not thinking of retiring: "I want to come back. I'm not giving up that easily."
Ramon Zenhäusern just doesn't want it to go his way at the moment. In Wengen, where he once again starts outside the top 30, he knows shortly after crossing the finish line that he has no chance of taking part in the second run with a deficit of over three seconds. Later it was a fact. The man from Valais finished 43rd out of the 52 racers who reached the finish line. As in Val d'Isère, Alta Badia, Madonna di Campiglio and Adelboden, the Valais skier remains without points.
The slalom specialist, who finished the season in third place in the discipline two years ago, is hard on himself. "I skied like a ski instructor: nice and smooth, safe and stable. But we're not in ski school here, we're in the World Cup. And of course that's not good enough." The problem: Zenhäusern can't really explain his lack of bite. He admits that the current situation is really bothering him.
"In training, I can see that the skills are there, that I haven't forgotten how to ski," says Zenhäusern. "But at the moment I'm just lacking confidence." Just as others have a run without knowing exactly how and why, it's the same for Zenhäusern - only the other way around.
A kink in Adelboden
Just a week and a half earlier, before the slalom in Adelboden, it had sounded different. "The situation isn't satisfying, but it's less of a burden than before," said Zenhäusern at the time. He recalled earlier lows and how he had once decided not to make his enjoyment of life dependent on rankings and hundredths of a second. After all, Zenhäusern said, he was healthy, had a good family and could still pursue his hobby as a profession.
However, the elimination at Chuenisbärgli, where Zenhäusern had previously finished in the top 15 seven times in a row, was still very hard on him, which carried over to Wengen. Even in the second race in front of his home crowd, which included his parents, he did not achieve the hoped-for liberation.
Zenhäusern has ruled out a break in the World Cup or a start in the European Cup. Success at the second-highest level would have little impact on his FIS points, but another disappointment would hurt all the more.
No plans to retire yet
The question therefore arises as to how much longer Zenhäusern wants to put up with this. After all, he can look back on a great career. He won Olympic silver in the slalom in Pyeongchang in 2018 and took six victories in the World Cup, two of them in parallel races. He also won Olympic and World Championship gold with the team. A haul that is impressive.
But when he realized during the interview that the reporters were speculating about a possible end to his career, Zenhäusern clearly countered. "I already want to come back. I'm not giving up that quickly," said the two-timer.
When asked about his remaining time in the World Cup, he nevertheless became pensive. "I used to think that I would race until 38 or 40. Simply because I enjoy it so much. At the moment, of course, the feeling is less great." How his career continues depends first and foremost on his health. His body has been fine so far, now Zenhäusern has to find a solution for his mind.
Coach sees himself as responsible
A difficult situation, as slalom head coach Matteo Joris knows, who sees himself and his team as having a responsibility. "Our task is to find a key together that will get Ramon back to the top." But how? "With work, work and work." An answer that may be vague, but ultimately corresponds to the bitter truth. If there was a simple solution, Zenhäusern would have implemented it long ago.
Before the World Championships in Saalbach, the slaloms in Kitzbühel and Schladming are still on the program. In Austria, Zenhäusern scored his last World Cup point of the season so far with 30th place in Gurgl at the end of November - perhaps a good omen for the upcoming races.
