01-10-2007, 12:55 PM
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#1 (permalink)
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Join Date: Nov 2006
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Kjetil Aamodt quits alpine skiing
Do you think he lost the desire ? It happens often after long breaks.
Thoughts ?
Quote:
Kjetil Aamodt leaves the scene of the White Circus
Patrick Lang 08.01.2007 15:40 Uhr
Saturday night, four-time Olympic champion Kjetil Aamodt was one of the guest stars of a sports-gala presented on Norway's national TV station NRK which awarded him the "Sportsman of the Year" trophy.
While thanking everybody, Aamodt suddenly announced his decision to quit alpine ski racing. The champion, very elegant in his black tuxedo, had a hard time controlling his emotion while thanking his parents, who have always supported him, and his wife Stine for waiting so long on him!
Almost everybody was taken by surprise after that announcement - his travel companions from the World Cup tour were definitively looking forward to meet him again this weekend in Wengen where he has planned to come back on the circuit. The skier from Oslo met them last November in Lake Louise where he trained a few days fore-running the downhill. At that point, he was strongly hoping to get back in shape and race again after the long summer break he needed to take after undergoing knee surgery in springtime.
He got twice injured within a few weeks last winter, first at Sestriere, while racing the Olympic downhill which he ended in 4th place, then at Are, during the World Cup Finals, so he was not able to train properly during summer after his operation.
Yet he was definitely aiming to return in January and prepare as well as possible his last medal events - the 2007 FIS World Championships at Are! He repeatedly confirmed it in December and everybody was expecting his return on snow.
Apparently the mood of the 35-year-old veteran changed gradually over the weeks. It's quite possible that he found out one day that he was not longer feeling the same strong passion burning in him as before. His love for the sport was certainly still the same but he doubted about his motivation and his momentum. Another injury would have been devastating. Was it really worth it, taking all risks again to capture that last major goal which eluded him in past winters - a gold medal in downhill?
It was indeed the last trophy missing in his impressive collection of prizes amassed during the last fifteen years which include a total of twenty medals (nine in gold in slalom, giant slalom, combined and Super-G) and numerous World Cup wins in all specialties. But he decided his health and his family were more important - a wise decision for most of his colleagues.
At Adelboden, his former rivals all paid tribute to him and talked with respect and emotion of him. "He has been a model in matter of athletic behaviour and excellence, he inspired me a lot as I always admired all-rounders as him or Marc Girardelli," said Austria's Benjamin Raich, the defending Overall World Cup champion who may dream to become his successor one day. "He was really impressing at the medal events, it's difficult to believe that he has been racing at the highest level for almost twenty years!"
"I remember very well watching him on TV clinching silver in Super-G at the 1991 World Championships at Saalbach behind Stephan Eberharter. He was so young at that time. I'm happy to have crossed his path for the last years!"
Aamodt is now supposed to meet his former mates at Chamonix where he won a downhill in 1994. He will be the star at the Dynastar party scheduled there on the 19th of January.
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Taken from world ski news. |
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Kjetil Aamodt quits alpine skiing
