Odermatt lowers priority of Kitzbühel downhill ahead of new season

Swiss alpine skier Marco Odermatt has said he is adjusting his approach ahead of the new World Cup season and will no longer chase victory so intensely in the famous Kitzbühel downhill in Austria. It is one of the best-known races in alpine skiing, and he has not yet managed to win it.

Kitzbühel no longer at the top

Odermatt admitted that in recent seasons he may have wanted the win too much. He has focused on it for the past two years without reaching the goal. In his words, it is still very high on his list of priorities, but its position has dropped slightly.

He explained that he will now most likely step back a little. Odermatt noted that he has already achieved a great deal else, so a single win would not change his entire career. He added that, emotionally, it would be wonderful to win these races one day.

World Championships and full commitment

The World Championships in February, held in his home country of Switzerland, in Crans-Montana, are possibly Odermatt's main target this year. Even so, he plans to go through the whole season giving everything. He pointed out that other important races await beforehand, in Adelboden, Wengen and Kitzbühel, so there is no chance to save energy anywhere.

Shiffrin's changes

As reported earlier, American skier Mikaela Shiffrin, last season's overall World Cup winner, has also changed her discipline priorities. For the first time since her teenage debut, she will rarely compete in slalom this season, even though in March she won her ninth World Cup slalom title, extending her record. She will focus mainly on giant slalom and super-G, two disciplines in which she has not shown her best form for some time. Odermatt's changes are less drastic.