January 2023, Malorie Blanc arrived for the first time in the world of the White Circus in Sankt Anton. The Valaisanne was not yet 20 years old, and found herself surrounded by Lara Gut-Behrami, Corinne Suter, Michelle Gisin and the greatest skiers on the planet whom she admired. Originally, she was supposed to participate in downhill training to get her bearings before the Junior Worlds which took place on the Karl Schranz track, but these training sessions had been canceled.
Two years later, the Ayent skier is back in the Arlberg resort with a different status. Since then, she has enriched her record, with a junior world champion title last winter in Châtel in super-G, her sporting experience, with a serious injury to her left knee in Crans-Montana in February, and has perfected her apprenticeship. , taking part in his first World Cup race in St. Moritz three weeks ago. “There is a world that separates these years. But I would have signed straight away to find myself where I am today,” smiles Malorie Blanc as she recalls these last twenty-four intense months. “Everything happened very quickly, so much happened, it’s crazy. When I think about it, it’s scary. There were a lot of emotions, I experienced a lot of positive things, and even the injury didn’t only have negative sides. »
A new freedom
Now 21, the woman who learned to ski in Anzère is evolving without pressure. His coaches want to give him time to continue his training in the elite. Here, there is no question of rushing the talented athlete who can trust her feelings before deciding whether or not to take her place in the starting gate. “It’s something new for me, I have to learn to manage myself, to take charge of my career,” explains the triple medalist of the 2024 Junior World Championships who will juggle World Cup races in the coming weeks. , which will stop at Cortina d’Ampezzo and Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and the European Cup. Second in the super-G rankings at continental level, she can legitimately aim for a top 3 and thus secure a fixed ticket for the next winter on the White Circus.
“I have a certain freedom because I do not have a precise program like in previous years, but an Excel plan which changes from week to week. I’m moving forward like this, which is good, because I have no other pressure than what I put on myself,” she continues. “I’m trying to distance myself a little because everything is new to me, but this environment is still impressive,” laughs the woman who is, however, hardly impressed when it comes to putting on skis.
Competing with the world’s best skiers in training
-As demonstrated by her performance on Thursday where she achieved the 3rd best time in the one and only training session held in Sankt Anton while she was racing down a World Cup downhill track for the first time. “This result gave me a lot of confidence and reassured me. » On the Karl Schranz track, Malorie Blanc competed with Federica Brignone, Lara Gut-Behrami, Sofia Goggia, who also missed a gate, and Cornelia Hütter. “I had specific goals before this training: to be on my outside ski, to stay relaxed, not to stress myself and to arrive at the bottom in good health. During the round, I told myself, we have to survive, because it was a lot of pressure. So when I saw my result, I laughed. »
What to give ideas for this weekend? This would be a poor understanding of Valais, which advocates learning above all else. “I know it doesn’t work when I’m thinking backwards, thinking about the outcome before skiing. I don’t usually set numerical goals for myself because it doesn’t work for me. I’m going to take this race as Thursday’s training. »
But as Malorie Blanc progresses as quickly as she hits the slopes, no one would be surprised to see her shake up the hierarchy this weekend on the Austrian snow
Johan Tachet, Sankt Anton
