Marcel Hirscher celebrated his 54th birthday on Sunday. World Cup victory. On Tuesday, however, the floodlight slalom in Schladming offers the next chance to draw level with Hermann Maier:”It is the first opportunity for a new series,”said the Salzburg-based artist. Kitzbühel winner Henrik Kristoffersen could catch up to record winner Raich on Tuesday with his fourth night race strike.
After his second place in Kitzbühel Hirscher was exhausted on the one hand (“I’m running out of battery now”), on the other hand he had already focused his attention on the tasks ahead. The 28-year-old wants to win again, even though he doesn’t really care about the “Herminator”best mark of 54 World Cup victories:”I think that’s more exciting for the media than it is for me,”he emphasized for the first time.
The situation in the overall World Cup – Hirscher is 154 points ahead of Kristoffersen in front – doesn’t matter either,”I don’t look at a score. That’s pretty much a banana at the moment,”he summed it up.”I know he absolutely wants that. I don’t have to, I can. I’ll keep trying to win races, not score points.”
I’m so bold that one or two spectators came to Kitzbühel to see Marcel Hirscher at least on the podium. I’ve always had my heart set on it when you can perform like you do abroad,”he said.
The conditions during the slalom on the Gansler slope would not have played into his hands, but he wasn’t the only one “I think everyone wants a little less snow when racing. But I’m really happy that it’s snowing, that we’re having a winter and not jumping around in the green field.”
Hirscher had to think “why I didn’t have a single metre in the first round to keep up with Henrik and Michi Matt. You have to be that honest. Because it was a good trip, it didn’t look bad. But there is just one second missing”. Already the training week before Kitzbühel showed signs that it is a bit harder in warmer temperatures and fresh snow.
Schladming also presents itself as an almost kitschy white winter landscape. The organisers are constantly looking for volunteers to help them slip the new snow out of the runway,”I think that we will have rather soft conditions in Schladming. That’s a bit of a fear,”Hirscher said.
On Tuesday evening Kristoffersen is chasing after his sixth race victory in Austria. He has already won the floodlight event three times, only Benjamin Raich was more successful with four victories. Four years ago, his very first World Cup victory happened in Schladming:”I am looking forward to Schladming. I live in Salzburg, I used to live in Ramsau. It’s not that far away. It’s a bit of a home race for me,”said the 23-year-old.
For Hirscher, it was just “a matter of time”until Kristoffersen returns to the winning route:”I know it from last year, and of course that’s already gnawing a bit at you. The Norwegian had impressed him in Kitzbühel,” which he did again partly for passages, actually like I know Henrik in slalom. The previous one was unusual.”
As so often, the Nightrace is the last special slalom before a big event. On Tuesday next week, before the athletes leave for the Olympic Games in South Korea, a parallel slalom will take place in Stockholm, and ÖSV-technique coach Marko Pfeifer is still looking for the fourth starter next to Hirscher, Michael Matt and Manuel Feller. There is much evidence of Marco Schwarz, who was born in Kitzbühel 16. while Christian Hirschbühl retired.
The man from Vorarlberg was in the final before his misfortune when an auxiliary goal caught up with him, but he was well on his way, if you consider his part-time working hours:”I have to tackle it right now in Schladming like in the second round. See that you stay loose, let the skis go, hold on to that. The speed is really good,”said the 27-year-old confidently.”After Schladming, the coaches will decide.”