Vinatzer before the Junior World Championships: “They expect me to win”

When the then 18-year-old Alex Vinatzer won slalom silver in Davos behind a certain Clement Noel two years ago, a new star was born in South Tyrol's ski heaven. His strong performances even earned the man from Gardena a ticket to the Olympic Games in PyeongChang. In the following season, the exceptional talent from Wolkenstein made it into the World Cup points for the first time, immediately taking 2th place in Levi and thus fulfilling the high expectations placed on him. Vinatzer also withstood the pressure at the Junior World Championships in Val di Fassa and won gold in a superior manner. Vinatzer's moment came in Zagreb. © APA/afp / DAMIR SENCAR

This year, the former ice hockey talent became South Tyrol's best slalom skater and climbed his first World Cup podium in Zagreb. “I’m obviously very happy with how the season went,” emphasizes Vinatzer. “The stated goal for the season was to get into the top 15 on the starting list - and I achieved that.” Pneumonia set Vinatzer back However, not everything went according to plan in the winter: in addition to four slalom failures, Vinatzer was paralyzed by pneumonia. “I was in bed for three weeks and couldn't train, but I still tried in Chamonix,” says the ski ace, who didn't make the trip to Naeba in Japan due to illness.

“Ultimately I was lucky that I was only not at 100 percent in one slalom. And also that the race in Japan fell victim to the weather.” Vinatzer is now fit again and is preparing for the Junior World Cup with the senior national team in Pozza di Fassa. His colleagues, including Tobias Kastlunger, have already set off for Norway; he will not undertake the long journey until March 8th. “Victory is expected of me” Alex Vinatzer Vinatzer is the favorite in the slalom. And he makes no secret of the fact that the only thing that counts for him is victory: “I’m going to Narvik to win. And I also believe that victory is expected of me,” says Vinatzer. But he also has legitimate medal ambitions in the giant slalom. Two years ago in Davos he narrowly missed the podium in fourth place, and last year he didn't finish the race. “I haven't been able to train much in the giant slalom because of the busy racing calendar, but I'm still aiming for a top 2 placement - especially if the snow is hard.” Despite the strain of travel and coronavirus In contrast to Norway's shooting star Lucas Braathen, the South Tyrolean is not skipping the Junior World Championships. Was he forced to do this by the association? “No, I wanted to defend my title,” explains Vinatzer, who has a real odyssey ahead of him. The giant slalom is on the program on March 12th, followed by the slalom the next day. And on March 15th, Vinatzer will be at the start again in Kranjska Gora, over 3300 kilometers away. “Of course I would have liked an extra day off, but I have to get through it.” That's why he briefly thought about skipping the Junior World Championships, but then decided to take part.

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Vinatzer before the Junior World Championships: “They expect me to win”

Alex Vinatzer is South Tyrol's big hope for gold at the Junior World Championships in Narvik, Norway. In the SportNews interview, he revealed whether he is satisfied with the current season, what he expects from the World Cup and why he briefly thought about giving up.

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