Slalom in Adelboden – Meillard wants to be on the podium, Yule wants an improvement, Rochat points – sport

Everything is a little different in the Bernese Oberland. Capricious weather results in a change of program, so that the slalom takes place on Saturday and the giant slalom only on Sunday. That means little respite for the artists in the pole forest, as the night slalom in Madonna di Campiglio was still scheduled for Wednesday evening. On Thursday, the Swiss-Ski riders arrived at the hotel in Adelboden.

Including a (elective) Valais trio that entered the slalom of the “69. Adelboden Ski Days” is increasing.

Meillard: Podium premiere with a red jersey?

On the one hand there is Loïc Meillard. Thanks to his 4th podium finish in the 5th slalom of the season, “Mr. Konstanz” the red jersey of the leader in the discipline ranking. This premiere in Switzerland of all places is “something special,” said Meillard. The resulting fuss about him doesn’t bother him: “The attention bothered me even more a few years ago. I can switch off now, it’s just nice.”

For the Valais native it is about the first slalom podium in Adelboden, while he came third in the giant slalom in 2021 and 2023. He missed the podium by as little as possible two years ago, when he missed out by exactly a hundredth of a second.

Yule: The past and form curve are correct

Only two Swiss people this millennium were able to find out how the best three slalom skiers feel on the Chuenisbärgli: Marc Berthod won in 2007 and Daniel Yule in 2020. In the latter case, the shape curve points upwards. Despite a big mistake, a fantastic second run in Madonna di Campiglio catapulted him to 7th place. This gave him “a lot of confidence that I can still do it. That doesn’t mean that all problems have been solved. But it is an important step in the right direction.”

Now the next increase should follow thanks to more willingness to take risks. Yule emphasizes that the program change is not a problem for the athletes: “It causes more chaos for the fan club, which is now trying to exchange the tickets.”

Rochat: Finding the fun again

Marc Rochat hasn’t even gotten up to speed yet. There is no countable result in the World Cup this winter. That’s where the fun ended. The Lausanne native, who once learned to ski in Valais, describes: “It is extremely difficult. When you know where your place is, it hurts. You think about it day and night, I try to understand what’s going on. I have the key.”

It is entirely conceivable that Rochat will find this key on Saturday, as he finished 5th last year. He can think of three reasons that make him optimistic: “I really like the slope, I can make the difference on this snow . Thirdly, I’m looking forward to the home crowd.” For him that means: “When I’m here at the start, I can find the fun again.”