Ski Alpin: Hirscher hunts the Maier record in Kitzbühel

With less stress than in the years before, Marcel Hirscher arrived in Kitzbühel on Thursday. This year’s super-G is left out by the Salzburg-based company, but that doesn’t change the interest of fans and the media.”Quite a hard landing. I have to get there a bit,”Hirscher said, who is aiming for his sixth World Cup victory in the slalom series on Sunday,”It’s running this year,”he said.

Hirscher had been at the Super-G in Kitzbühel every year since 2014. The main reason for this was the World Cup points for the combination, which consisted of Super-G and a slalom course. However, because the Hahnenkamm station wagon was cancelled in 2017 and Hirscher has not had any speed training in his legs since last year due to his injury break, he will not participate in the race this year. This is always a great mental challenge for me,”he admitted.

Nevertheless, the interest in his person seems to be unbroken. According to Mario Reiter, the marketing representative of the ÖSV, there are currently more national and international enquiries regarding Hirscher than ever before,”I am of course very pleased. Of course, the basic prerequisite is always success,”said the object of desire modestly.

While last year he saw himself in the role of Henrik Kristoffersen as the hunter of his rival Henrik Kristoffersen, this year it seems to be the other way round: Hirscher dominates his career like never before, and especially in the slalom his form is impressive. The man from Annaberg celebrated five victories in a row, plus three more in the giant slalom.

“It’s running this year,”Hirscher explained.”It’s so unexpected. When I think about it, in September, not so long ago, I didn’t really know what was going to happen this year, let alone believe that victories in this season will be possible.” The Kitzbühel winner of the previous year is aware, however, that his success story will come to an end.”Someday a mistake will creep in, sometime I will be able to make it one day”.

He hopes, however, that this will not necessarily happen at the upcoming home races. In Kitzbühel and Schladming Hirscher can break the victory record of Hermann Maier with the ÖSV men. Maier won 54 victories from 1997 to 2008. Hirscher, who followed in his footsteps almost seamlessly with the joint sponsor Raiffeisen, is (still) holding on to one less:”Of course, this would have a meaning for me. But one should not praise the day before the evening,”he warned humility.

Hirscher had no news to report regarding his Olympic plans. Only starts in slalom and giant slalom are still fixed. His appearance in the combination is likely to be unrealistic, the Super-G.”This is then delayed until I have to more or less force myself to make a decision,”admitted the six-time overall World Cup winner. In the combination, he said, there was “the chance to make a medal. As you have seen at the last major events, this is possible. But there was always a great deal that it worked”.

Leodegar Pruschak, head of Raiffeisen marketing Leodegar Pruschak, gave him a travel guide to prepare himself perfectly for the possibly arduous waiting period in South Korea:”I already have three at home anyway,”Hirscher revealed afterwards. If the reading doesn’t fill him in, he’ll know how to pass the time in Asia.”There’ll be some series I can watch.”