Paula Moltzan kicked off the alpine skiing World Cup season impressively, achieving her career-best giant slalom result. However, she pondered whether she might be hitting her peak performance too early with the Milan-Cortina Olympics still over three months away. Moltzan expressed her belief that she is establishing a strong foundation to progress from. The World Cup season, spanning five months, is crucial for skiers, yet the opportunity to vie for Olympic glory arises only once every four years.
Moltzan acknowledged the concept of peaking in preparation for the Olympics, mentioning that her coaches monitor her recovery and performance levels to optimize her training regimen. She aims to align her form appropriately for the Olympics. On the other hand, two-time Olympic champion Mikaela Shiffrin emphasized the importance of strategic planning in managing training, energy expenditure, and recovery throughout the season without aiming for a specific peak moment.
Skiers hold varied opinions on whether it is feasible or advisable to tailor the entire World Cup season around the Olympics, which may involve a single race for some athletes. While Austrian speed specialist Vincent Kriechmayr emphasized the necessity of timing peak performance before the Olympics, Roland Assinger, head coach of the Austria women’s team, highlighted the unpredictable nature of competition outcomes during major events.
Italian downhill gold medalist Sofia Goggia and Swiss super-G champion Lara Gut-Behrami shared similar sentiments, emphasizing the need to focus on each race and maintain peak fitness throughout the season. French giant slalom specialist Alexis Pinturault shifted his focus solely to his discipline to plan for success at the Olympics, while Norwegian tech specialist Henrik Kristoffersen suggested that winning races consistently is the ideal preparation for Olympic success.
