Ski Alpin: Bode Miller criticizes FIS:”Regulations are imbecile”.

Shortly before the Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, Bode Miller criticized the FIS World Ski Federation. The US-American is particularly concerned about the limitations of the material. He also thinks little of city events and recognizes less intensity with Marcel Hirscher than with Hermann Maier.

“As a reminder, two years ago the FIS imposed a widening of the skier’s regulations to make the sport safer for the athletes. However, since this season narrower skis are allowed again.

We athletes could have told them that straight away – we’re riding with the equipment,”he said,” If someone falls down and lands in the safety fences, it doesn’t matter whether the ski is two millimetres narrower or the radius is one metre longer “.

Instead, Miller calls for liberalisation of the materials market. In this way, every athlete can adapt the equipment to his or her style, and there is a greater variety of winners. The blame for the unnecessary regulations lies with the 40-year-old of an Austrian ski company:”The equipment association is dominated above all by Atomic,”explained Miller,”As soon as other brands win races, Atomic says, we need a change. All other ski companies can chop up all their equipment, burn it and have to start over.”

The idea of bringing sport closer to the public is a good one,”said the 33 times World Cup winner. From the athletes’ point of view, however, these races are not representative.

Responding to the dominance of Marcel Hirscher and Mikaela Shiffrin, Miller recalls the times of Hermann Maier:”He won eleven Super-Gs in a row, that was boring,”he said. The current lack of drama in the World Cup is pushing Miller to another problem:”Hirscher and Kristoffersen are far better technicians than I am, but they drive with less intensity than Maier and me. That makes it less exciting.”