Injured ankle on Saturday during the first round of the giant, Clément Noël was forced to withdraw before the slalom of Val d'Isère. The pain was too intense to ski in these conditions on the Face de Bellevarde. The Frenchman will undergo treatment and hopes to be back next weekend at Alta Badia in Italy.
Clément Noël, this Sunday morning, did you know very quickly that it was not going to be possible?
When I got up, I was pretty much okay. Afterwards the ankle had swollen a little. I knew it wasn't going to be easy. I tried the shoe last night, it wasn't easy. I tried again this morning, I thought maybe there was a chance because I didn't feel bad in the shoe. But skiing requires a lot of constraints, you have the impression that the ankle is like a splint, but when I came to put pressure on my foot, I didn't dare at all. It hurt me. I skated to the track, I saw that it was going to be hot. I tried to warm up a little, to set off on the track, but I immediately knew that it wasn't possible.
Did you regret leaving the giant?
It's easy to say in hindsight that I shouldn't have done it. Yes, it's certain that I had more chances of achieving a result today rather than yesterday. I think as a giant, I haven't been skiing too bad lately. I felt good on my skis with slalom confidence. For me, it was a wise choice. From there, if there is thought behind it and it is wise, then no, there is no regret in having made the giant. Afterwards we know that it's skiing, it's risky. When you take all the risks to have a decent round, obviously there are risks of falling. I'm doing well, I'm not hurt too much, it could have been worse. We avoided the worst. I'm not going to make a giant again right away. I'm going to put my ankle back together and do some slalom. Because that’s where I perform best.
Does the Alta Badia slalom next weekend seem suitable to you?
I think so. I need to do one or two more additional tests. I had an x-ray and an ultrasound. I'm going to do an MRI again to see if everything is in place. I don't see too many problems doing Alta Badia. I already have less pain than yesterday, I limp a little when walking, but it's slight. We'll see how it evolves. I'm not a doctor. The goal is to be there, I think it's reasonable.
When you fell, did you immediately fear that it was more serious than that?
A little yes. Again, I don't get injured often so I don't really know. I immediately felt that the ankle was average in the shoe as soon as I got up. We checked on the track to see if it wasn't broken, but I was able to move so that was quite reassuring. But I told myself with the adrenaline maybe when it's hot I don't feel much. In the end, I still did well. More fear than harm.
Is this the most violent fall you have suffered in your career?
Since I really don't fall often, yes, it's clearly the most violent.
And two teeth were also affected, but quickly taken care of…
Yes, delivered directly, they were super efficient, they redid my teeth the same day. By 2 p.m. it was already fixed. Well, that's just aesthetics, but the teeth are a bit practical all the same. If I wanted to race properly today I had to feel good. And teeth help.
A word about Steven Amiez, who had a very strong first round…
It's not at all a surprise to me, we trained on the track last week, he skied very well, it's a track that suits him. And he even has great qualities, at the moment, he is confident. Before he passed I found that the first ones had not skied the fire. There is Henrik Kristoffersen who has a good round without being crazy down there. There was room for Steven, if he skied. He did it. It's very good. Steven said it, he still has a big game to do. The truth is that it's not easy to start last in the World Cup in the second round. He never experienced it. Afterwards, the novelty doesn't do so much harm. The first time this happened to me, it went well. We're on a roll, we feel good, we know we're skiing well. I trust him.
Having watched the round from television, is there any frustration?
Yes, watching the round on television is not what we want to do. Afterwards, if it's just one race it doesn't compromise my season. I'm doing pretty well. It's frustrating because it's in Val d'Isère and I wanted to be part of this beautiful celebration, this beautiful day. It looked like a fun trail to ski. I certainly had a card to play, but not in this state.
