For Italy's ski men: a tearful end to their career

In recent days, Matteo Marsaglia has been at the center of a polemic for which he was basically unable to do anything. The 37-year-old Roman had been assured of a starting place for the downhill race by the coaches before the start of the World Championships. Then Christof Innerhofer drove sensationally well in training, but there was no room for him in the four-man quartet he had to go home. This caused heated discussions in Italian ski circles, but also far beyond. Marsaglia made his World Championship appearance on Sunday and finished 15th in the downhill. As it turned out, this was a kind of farewell performance. After the race, the skier from Italy's capital announced that he would end his career at the end of the season. “I was not the skier of 1000 victories, but I think I stood up many times and hope that I could be an example for some. “It was a great journey,” he said in an interview Eurosport – with a shaky voice, lots of emotional pauses and tears on her face. A World Cup victory, but also many setbacks Marsaglia, whose sister Francesca ended her career last year, has so far taken part in 207 World Cup races. His greatest success was the Super-G victory in Beaver Creek in 2012, in the same season he also reached the podium in second place in the Val Gardena Super-G. Marsaglia's career was also marked by many injuries, especially his back problems that ran through his career like a red thread. “Now I want to be a full-time dad.” Matteo Marsaglia Now the veteran wants to qualify for the World Cup finals and then say goodbye to the ski stage. What comes next? “First of all, I want to be a full-time dad,” he said in a statement from the Italian Winter Sports Association. “I already have a son and a second child is on the way. I would like to take a year off and devote myself to my family. We'll see what comes next. What is certain is that I will teach my children to ski. I want to pass on this happiness.”

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For Italy's ski men: a tearful end to their career

The first week of the Ski World Championships in Courchevel is over. It not only produced many a sensational victory or one or two tearful disappointments, but also many emotional moments. There was one of them on Sunday in the Azzurri men's team.

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