During training for Kitzbühel, Austrian Felix Hacker seriously injures his knee.
The world’s most famous downhill race is scheduled for Saturday in Kitzbühel.
Bad scene: Frenchman Cyprien Sarrazin crashed heavily in Bormio at the end of December.
The Norwegian Aleksander Aamodt Kilde crashed heavily in Wengen around a year ago.
Skiing spectacle on the Streif: The danger is always there – Gallery
During training for Kitzbühel, Austrian Felix Hacker seriously injures his knee.
The world’s most famous downhill race is scheduled for Saturday in Kitzbühel.
Bad scene: Frenchman Cyprien Sarrazin crashed heavily in Bormio at the end of December.
The Norwegian Aleksander Aamodt Kilde crashed heavily in Wengen around a year ago.
A safety debate is raging in the Alpine Ski World Cup – once again. And in Kitzbühel, one of the most dangerous courses of all is now on the line. Has the limit of what is reasonable been reached?
Marco Odermatt and Cyprien Sarrazin stood behind the bar in a trendy Kitzbühel pub, roaring and bare-chested. The pictures of the partying ski stars went around the world. One year later, the Swiss Odermatt is fighting for his first victory at the Hahnenkamm races – and the Frenchman Sarrazin is fighting to return to a normal life.
The Streif has always been synonymous with great spectacle – even off the piste. But there is always concern on one of the most dangerous World Cup courses. There have long been discussions about the safety of alpine stars. However, after a series of bad crashes, they have gained new momentum ahead of the 85th edition of the Tyrolean Ski Festival with the super-G on Friday and the downhill on Saturday (both at 11.30 am).
-Race director: “It’s five past twelve”
This is also due to Sarrazin, who is missing this time due to injury, one year after his double triumph and the big pub party. In a heavy training crash in Bormio shortly after Christmas, the 30-year-old suffered a bleed near his brain. He underwent surgery on his head and was in a coma. Ski racing is out of the question at the moment: the Frenchman still has a long rehabilitation ahead of him; it remains to be seen when and if Sarrazin will even return to the World Cup.
“It’s not five to twelve, but five past twelve,” said Markus Waldner, Race Director at the FIS World Federation, recently with regard to the many retirements, especially among the speed skiers. The battle for speed and perfection has long since become a battle for materials. Thanks to high-tech preparation, the skis allow such high speeds that even top skiers find it difficult to maintain control. Even someone like Sarrazin.
Alessandro Trovati/AP/dpa
Schramm crashes heavily in training
Some riders who have been in contact with Sarrazin by cell phone have recently reported that he seems to be feeling a little better. However, the Frenchman’s nasty accident on December 27 at the latest has shown that he has reached the limit of what is reasonable: The limit of what is reasonable has been reached, if not exceeded. People are not machines. And should be allowed to make mistakes without paying for them with their health.
Like Jacob Schramm, for example. The 26-year-old German, like so many racers in Streif history before him, crashed heavily during training on Wednesday. He suffered a slight concussion and torn cruciate ligaments in both knees. We can’t go on seeing the rescue helicopter flying in every week, said men’s national coach Christian Schwaiger.
Neureuther in favor of uniform suits
“Of course, a skier always has a responsibility to himself. But we’re at a point where we’re no longer just talking about safety, but something has to be decided,” former ski star Felix Neureuther told the German Press Agency. “You will never find something that will please everyone, but you have to set clear rules.”
For example, the 40-year-old advocates uniform and slightly slower racing suits. Other fabrics could be used to slow down the speed, he said. “This is also possible in such a way that it still looks like a racing sport and not a leisure sport. On the track, 5 km/h makes a big difference, but it still looks just as spectacular on TV.” Romed Baumann, the veteran of the current German speed team, also said that reducing the speed a little should be a goal.
Ski edges as sharp as knives
The icy slopes, but above all the skis, boots and bindings, are being prepared more and more aggressively. “The material has become so aggressive, it’s really enormous. People are now skiing radii that were unthinkable in the past,” said Neureuther. “And you no longer have to ski such positions to get feedback from your ski. It reacts immediately to the smallest detail.”
Sarrazin was virtually catapulted out of the Stelvio piste in Bormio in changeable snow conditions. The Norwegian Aleksander Aamodt Kilde had his calf slashed open in his fall in Wengen a good year ago – the edges of the skis are now so razor-sharp.
Airbag obligation is often circumvented
Many expect the world federation FIS to counteract this development. The sport is currently systematically destroying itself, said the sports director of the German Ski Association, Wolfgang Maier, recently on ARD television. However, reconciling all interests and their representatives – be it riders, coaches, associations and, of course, manufacturers – is the big challenge.
If it has an advantage, no athlete will give it up voluntarily. This has already been demonstrated by the introduction of mandatory airbags this season. Many riders avoid it thanks to an exemption. On the Streif, they will once again be fighting for every single kilometer per hour. But there is always concern.
