There are still five weeks to go until the start of the Ski World Cup season. And there is still a big question mark over the fitness of returnee Marcel Hirscher.
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- Marcel Hirscher will return to the Ski World Cup next season. The eight-time overall World Cup winner retired five years ago.
- There is still a big question mark over the form of the Austrian-born racer, who will be competing for the Netherlands.
- Apparently there are problems with the set-up of Hirscher's equipment.
The euphoria was huge when Marcel Hirscher announced his big comeback for the coming winter in April. Since then, however, it has died down somewhat. There was uproar about his wild card, which was also criticized by top athletes. And as before, nobody knows exactly what shape the eight-time overall World Cup winner is in.
Originally, the 35-year-old wanted to compete in several Continental races in New Zealand in August. However, after two weeks of testing and training Down Under, Hirscher returned earlier than planned and without any competition experience. Due to poor slope conditions and weather forecasts, as he explained.
The technical specialist, who is now competing for the Netherlands, was nevertheless observed during his training sessions. As reported by "Blick", "spies from other teams" looked very closely at Hirscher's skis. And they are said to have seen that the former World Cup dominator had "glaring problems with the set-up of his equipment".
How ready is Hirscher really?
Hirscher also skied slower than the local giant slalom specialist Alice Robinson. "That's why more and more people are saying that Hirscher's comeback attempt is just a PR stunt," writes Blick.
Ski fans will find out how ready Hirscher really is five years after his retirement in five weeks' time. Then it's time for the World Cup opener in Sölden. By then it will also be clear whether Hirscher can really benefit from the new wildcard rule, which would make it easier for him to return to the top of the world.
The FIS apparently wants to discuss the interpretation of this wildcard once again - and clarify whether Hirscher can really go into his first races with bib number 31, as initially announced, or whether he will have to start with a number in the region of 60. This is to be discussed at the FIS committee meetings in Zurich this week.