A catastrophic resignation in Austria’s ski scene

Mathias Graf has had an adventurous career. The now 28-year-old was once a great slalom talent in Austria, then changed sports and shook up the ski cross scene. But now he has said goodbye to the big stage with a bang.

"I know that I could win medals at the World Championships and the Olympic Games. However, I simply cannot reconcile it with my conscience to continue in this system and always be silent. For this reason, I have made the decision to end my career as a professional athlete," he said in an interview with Crown.

Anger at the FIS What exactly does he mean by that? "Over the last two years, a number of things have accumulated that were simply not OK for me. These are things within the team, but also decisions made by the FIS during races. For me, it is still a disgrace that we were sent down in the most adverse conditions in February on the Reiteralm - where Sonja Gigler tore her cruciate ligament and I injured my back," Graf told the Crown.

This means that a successful skier is going into early retirement. Graf was once one of the great slalom talents in Austria and finished in a strong 18th place in Kitzbühel. However, he was unable to make the final breakthrough and so the Vorarlberg native tried his hand at ski cross. A stroke of luck, as it turned out. Graf won two races in the World Cup in December 2022, including one in Innichen. In addition, there are numerous top 10 results, as well as nine victories in the European Cup, the second highest racing series.

This time there is no resignation from resignation Graf had already briefly announced the end of his career in the summer of 2022. The financial hurdle was too high, he said at the time. Thanks to sponsorship money, Graf was able to save his career after all - and then two years later he really quit. "This time there will be no resignation from retirement," says the Austrian, who will begin an internship at a cable car manufacturer in a few days and thus start a new life.

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A catastrophic resignation in Austria’s ski scene

It won't be long now until the new winter season begins. There has been a turbulent resignation in Austria's ski scene in the run-up to the event.

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