Of
Daniel Sparisci
Skiing, the American returns to super-G in Saint Moritz, first European test after retiring from racing six years ago: «I still feel like a twenty-year-old»
Feeling like you did at twenty, at forty. Feeling free: defying the laws of gravity with a titanium knee, feeling like Lindsey Vonn. «As if it were the first time, without chasing records but only the love of skiing. Why shouldn't I try?”. Yes, why not do it, when you also have a champion friend – and designated heir -, like Sofia Goggia to give you advice and moral assistance? There is a double wait for the first super-G in St. Moritz (repeat tomorrow, here is the programme): for Sofiafresh from his triumphant return to Beaver Creek, looking for another feat on Corviglia where in 2022 he won in the free climb 24 hours after the operation on his left hand.
Comeback, the sense of another return surrounded by doubts and why. Lindsey she has tried to explain it in recent weeks through the teachings he left her mother, who passed away two years ago: “Reminding ourselves that we can only live one day at a time removes the weight of the past, focuses our attention on the present and prevents us from fearing the future.” It is unlikely that many thoughts will enter the helmet when it comes off today – weather permitting – with bib number 31 on the track where she won seven times when she was the “Speed Queen” (82 career successes), an unbeatable queen yet capable of showing the physical frailties of her countless injuries and her internal ones, there was a phase in her life in which she felt ” empty and sad.”
Now, almost six years after the last apparition, she feels “finally inside a healthy body, driven by new energy”. «Life has dragged me on an incredible roller coaster, now I no longer feel pain. Life is short and you have to live it to the fullest every day. And I'm also tired of people (the haters on social media) who predict a future full of negativity for me” she said, adding to Eurosport that she is aiming for Milan-Cortina (“It would be a dream”), she is the former Olympic champion of descent in Vancouver 2010, another era. She claims to want to proceed in small steps, her friend Sofia assures that she is already competitive, that in free practice training in the USA she was among the top ten. «Her return is good for the whole environment, I would like to be back on the podium with her again and I will help her» said the champion from Bergamo. We will see.
In the American preliminary races to qualify for the World Cup Lindsey earned a 19th place finish as a best result, at Beaver Creek her pacesetters were more than a second and a half slower than the athletes, but there she didn't have to shoot. Those who followed her in the preparation (Austria, New Zealand and Colorado) are convinced that she still has a lot to give. “But I don't have to prove anything to anyone, even if you know me deep down: I don't just love taking part.” Exactly like Sofia, who now flies low with words to return very high.
December 21, 2024 (changed December 21, 2024 | 09:54)
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