The Wengen weekend starts on Friday with a Super-G, before the Lauberhorn race takes place on Saturday (from 12.30 p.m., live on ORF1). The slalom is traditionally scheduled for Sunday (10:15 a.m. or 1:15 p.m., live on ORF1). “I’ll be surprised,” said head coach Pfeifer.
The last time things were similar for the men in the 1991/92 World Cup. The starting point for the lull at the time was a slalom victory by Rudi Nierlich in March 1991 in Aspen. Almost a whole year passed before Günther Mader next delighted the nation with a Super-G victory in Panorama in 1992. In between there were 34 races without a red-white-red victory.
Looking forward to the classics in Wengen
The classics start on Thursday at the Lauberhorn in Wengen. It starts with a Super-G, a discipline in which the ÖSV men have already achieved podium places this year.
Kriechmayr is a bearer of hope
At the speed races in Wengen, Kriechmayr once again bears the brunt of the pressure of expectations. He has already won the downhill classic twice. “Of course I’ve been able to celebrate some great success there. But that doesn’t matter, that’s in the past. I have to make sure I get it back to the point now, and that’s the goal,” said the 33-year-old. “I want to win races, I want to be on the podium all the time.”
GEPA/Harald Steiner
There were no podium places for the Austrians in downhill and super-G this season. Kriechmayr came second in the Bormio Super-G, and Lukas Feurstein was third in the same discipline in Beaver Creek. As far as the World Cup nominations for Saalbach (February 4th to 16th) are concerned, almost everything is still open. “The people with podium places, we don’t have that many, obviously have very good cards,” explained Pfeifer.
-According to Pfeifer, everyone else still has to deliver. “Everyone knows that they can move into the foreground with a top ten placement or maybe even buy a ticket,” emphasized Pfeifer. “I am convinced that one or the other can still improve on the classics in Wengen and Kitzbühel.”
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Daniel Hemetsberger and Stefan Babinsky, who have only had one top ten result this winter, are under pressure. They achieved this in the Super-G in Bormio. Otmar Striedinger was never better than 22. The Carinthian said he felt “really comfortable” in Wengen this year.
He is not worried about his participation in the World Cup. “It’s important that you perform well in every race, and I’ll try to bring that back to the point on Friday and Saturday.”
But the Lauberhorn favorite is the home team. Last year, the Swiss Marco Odermatt won both downhill runs, and in the Super-G he was second behind the Frenchman Cyprien Sarrazin and ahead of the Norwegian Aleksander Aamodt Kilde. Both are not taking part this year due to serious injuries.
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