A ski ace is about to make a comeback

The departure double from Matterhorn fell victim to the weather , the Styrian now has until the first weekend in December before the first speed races. In December 2020, Schmidhofer suffered complex injuries to his left knee during the World Cup downhill in Val d'Isere. Last winter she attempted a comeback, but canceled it and gave up her chance at the Olympics.

At the speed races in Zauchensee in January it became clear that it would take a while to return to old form. The 32-year-old decided not to go downhill like Super-G in Salzburg and then took a long break. “It was once very important for the body to rest. We then built up very well, the summer was good. “Chile was a very good preparation,” the 2017 Super-G world champion told the APA – Austria Press Agency. She overcame a corona illness that occurred in the summer well.

Her knee is no longer causing her any problems. “I'm very surprised at how good it is and confident.” The big difference from last winter's comeback attempt is that she doesn't have any movements on the mountain that remind her of her knee. “Last year I did a lot of extra warm-up. That's no longer necessary, I can go back to my normal warm-up program. I don’t need to give the knee any special attention.”

Schmidhofer was a forerunner at the Super-G in Zauchensee in January 2022. © APA / EXPA/JOHANN GRODER

Physiotherapy is of course necessary, but otherwise she could concentrate more on skiing. “Now it’s about pushing my technically good skiing to the point where I can really attack again. I skied quite well last year. But now it’s time to really push again, attack and accelerate.”

Not starting in Zauchensee in January was one of the worst decisions of her career. “I had to decide to say 'no.' Saying 'no' is generally difficult, but in a situation like this it was even more difficult." But she made the right decision. Of course, she didn't feel well after that. Because the big goal she had (Olympics, note), which she had worked towards for 13 months, was gone. “Then you’re in a bit of a void. You always have a goal in mind and suddenly it’s gone.”

Doing nothing seemed strange and unusual. “My family didn’t have an easy time with me. I was dissatisfied, disappointed, sad, unhappy – everything that was pretty negative.” After a week or two, this phase subsided again. “Then I was on vacation and then the Olympics were on. At first I told myself I wouldn't watch anything. Then I looked at everything. I was excited with my colleagues and they want to stay up to date. Skiing is just part of life.”

Summer training in Chile as the foundation stone What is important to her is maintaining the technical level developed in Chile and attacking. “Working right at the limit – that’s the next step,” explained the speed specialist. “Skiing was really good (last winter) and I was able to improve on the deficit. In Lake Louise (2021) I was four seconds behind, so I got a lot closer.” Recognizing that was important for her. “Now it’s time to fine-tune it, test more skis, try different things.”

She doesn't yet have the ticket for the World Championships in Courchevel/Meribel in mind: "I am of the opinion that if I ski well and show what I can do, the results will come by themselves. We are so many fast girls that you almost have to qualify for the World Cup race. Only nine are allowed to go and there are 13 of us. Only four of them are allowed to go to the World Cup. To be there, you have to deliver. That’s only possible if you show off your best skiing.”

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A ski ace is about to make a comeback

The Austrian Nicole Schmidhofer is looking forward to her long-awaited comeback after her failed attempt to return in January.

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