© KEYSTONE/JEAN-CHRISTOPHE BOTT
The loud “JAAAA” in the finish area was worth all the talk in the world. Giant Olympic champion at 24, Marco Odermatt made a hell of a bet between the two rounds.
“A few days ago, we also wrote that I mightn’t handle the pressure, he recalled. It’s always a question of opinions.” But it is clear that following 7th place in the downhill and especially his unusual outing in Super-G, when he was in the medal race, and the results of the last Worlds in Cortina, questions regarding the management of the pressure eventually bloomed.
“I risked everything once more in the second round, continues the hero of the day. A new error like in the Super-G and I would not be on the podium. And we would probably have said once more that I did not have the nerves .” Odermatt made a point of recalling that at this level, you had to take risks if you wanted to win something: “If I had finished 4th, I would certainly have been more angry!”
Changing skis and bindings
In the end, everything worked and the Nidwalden was able to enforce the logic of the season, he who dominates the giant like no one since Sölden. That the plan went off without a hitch delights him, even if it meant working in China. “I knew from the start that something was possible here, although we had a bit of trouble getting the hardware sorted out,” Odermatt said.
Then the new Olympic champion to reveal the crazy gamble taken between the two runs: “I completely changed my set-up before the second.” On the advice of his serviceman and Justin Murisier and feeling well following the first run that something was not working as he wanted, Odi decided to review his copy: “I took another ski and another binding. It You still need a bit of courage when you’re in the lead at the Olympics following the first run.”
A winning bet for the skier from Hergiswil, who said he was proud to be able to follow in the footsteps of Carlo Janka. Then he concludes: “It always takes a lot of things before you get to a gold medal. It takes the coaches, the serviceman, the ski brand, the sponsors and of course the family. It’s amazing to see how supported an athlete is at all levels.”