Opinions differ slightly as to what level the 35-year-old is currently at and what he can achieve in terms of sport. But among his colleagues, respect and admiration prevail for the Salzburg native, who is electrifying the ski world again after a five-year absence. So for Lucas Braathen, who is making his comeback this year, the matter is clear: Hirscher’s return will make “a dream come true,” said the Norwegian, who is now starting for Brazil. “Along with Ted Ligety, he is the skier I have studied the most throughout my career. Marcel inspired me even before I got to the World Cup. But one thing was missing: I never really had the chance to work with him to eat.”
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The return of his long-time rival and friend is a “huge story,” said Felix Neureuther. Hirscher is “exactly one of the characters and protagonists that we urgently need.” Manuel Feller also sees the reunion with Hirscher as positive – for very personal reasons. The Tyrolean is a former teammate and buddy of the seven-time world champion. The two were “always good friends,” emphasized Feller. Even the couple’s children “go play together more often because our two women know each other better.”
However, there is a lot of guesswork regarding the form of the eight-time overall World Cup winner. This was fueled by Hirscher himself, as he hardly gave any interviews and when he did, he didn’t talk about times or goals. His physical condition is no longer comparable to that before his resignation five years ago, and the coordination work on the material is far from being completed, explained the still dogged tinkerer. What made matters worse was that he was only able to complete a few days of training on snow due to illness. In any case, the focus of his project is on having fun.
“I don’t know how good he is in shape. But I think it’s great that he’s racing again,” said US star Mikaela Shiffrin. “He was the best skier in the world for eight years, so he can be trusted with anything – including victories. Of course, you can’t expect him to come back the way he left off. But he doesn’t have to prove anything to anyone anymore,” said Feller about the new star of the Dutch ski team.
Hermann Maier, another Austrian ski giant, recently made people sit up and take notice with his assessment. “For me, he is capable of winning from a standing start. He will be one of the winning runners from the first races,” predicted the winner of 54 World Cup races in an interview with Kurier. Hirscher has 67 victories to date – according to Maier, there could be more to come. “He didn’t suddenly start skiing again, but was constantly at it. He developed his skiing skills, did a lot of off-road skiing and was compared to Henrik Kristoffersen, Alexis Pinturault and a few others.”
Last week Hirscher also trained with the Austrians in Sölden and got a direct comparison. “I doubt whether he had given it his all,” said ÖSV Alpine boss Herbert Mandl as an onlooker. But even before his supposed career ended, Hirscher was often not among the fastest when he trained with the team. “He was always a bit of a lowlife,” said Neureuther. “But he’s always done well with that, and maybe it takes some of the pressure off him.”
Stefan Kraft trusts Hirscher “to do exactly what he says. I believe him that there is still something missing and if he gets into the 15, it will be good,” said the ski jumper. It’s different to be at the top with number 30. “He knows he has to take 100 percent risk, mistakes will happen. He’s not used to it anymore, hasn’t raced in five years. That does something to you. That’s why it doesn’t mean that he might not be in the race either second round is coming.” However, he also trusts Hirscher with podium places. “It’s definitely very exciting. I’ll definitely turn on the TV when Marcel drives.”
Only Hirscher determines whether he is ready to return in Sölden. He will take as long as possible to make the decision. Because Hirscher will only start if he really feels comfortable and competitive. The first giant slalom and also the first competition of the season is scheduled for Sunday. The Salzburger competed in his last race to date in 2019. On March 17th he came 14th in the slalom at the World Cup finals in Soldeu.
