Winner twice last winter, Joséphine Pagnier did not want to get excited at the dawn of a season that began this weekend in Lillehammer (Norway) with an 18th place finish and a disqualification for a combination problem.
2023-2024 was the winter of great firsts for Joséphine Pagnier: that of success in the World Cup (in Lillehammer and Engelberg) and wearing the yellow bib of world n°1 (7e at the end of the season). Enough to sharpen your ambitions at the dawn of a season which did not start in the best possible way this weekend? “No, because I already had very high expectations,” she explained in early November. Of course, I didn’t expect it last season, but winning and wearing the jersey one day was one of my goals. I have always been ambitious. I also know that the seasons follow each other, but are not the same, so I want to give myself time. »
Joséphine Pagnier wants to learn from last winter to continue her progress. “It offered me more knowledge about myself, how I can respond to success and how I can do better to be the best I can be in these situations. I don’t know how this winter will go, but I think I have the resources so that if I experience the same thing again, I will do it a little differently. » And in particular not trying to force things: “I wanted to keep this jersey so much that I wanted to do more. Except that more is the enemy of good. Especially in my case. If I find myself in the same situation, this is what I need to improve. »
“Everything that has been missed is what allows you to grow”
Rather than talking about ambitions, results or planning for the 2026 Olympics, the Jurassian prefers to focus on the concrete: “Everything that has been missed is what allows us to grow. I know how I managed to obtain these results, I know what I have to do; but I don’t know the level of the others, nor the weather conditions, etc. My objective this season is to learn to be consistent on a big calendar where we will move a lot, with a lot of jet-lags. To keep as much energy as possible, to stay focused on what I have to do, on my plan, optimize my recovery… Whatever the results, this season will serve me in that sense. »
Swiss
