"Absolute affront"

Hirscher wild card: ÖSV boss attacks FIS

Marcel Hirscher will be competing for the Netherlands - with a wildcard.(Bild: GEPA Pictures, Adobe Stoickj, Krone KREATIV,)

The fact that the wild card in the Alpine Ski World Cup was introduced just before the comeback season of all-time great Marcel Hirscher has stirred up a lot of dust in recent days. Now ÖSV Managing Director Christian Scherer has spoken out and is furious.

"The behavior of the FIS is an absolute affront to the member federations," Scherer is quoted as saying by the Swiss newspaper "Blick". It is regrettable that the world federation has not learned anything from recent incidents - such as the fluorine ban - and has not involved the specialist committees accordingly. We are not against a wild card, but against the way it was introduced - we welcome Hirscher's start in the World Cup, Scherer specified on Wednesday.

"The current discussions could have been avoided altogether if a coordinated process had been followed and the stakeholders had been consulted," said an annoyed Scherer. Recently, several athletes heavily criticized the introduction of the wildcard.

"Wildcard not just for Hirscher"
FIS Race Director Markus Waldner, however, denied that the rule was made especially for Hirscher. "The wildcard is not just there for Hirscher. That may be the case today, but tomorrow it will be someone else," said the South Tyrolean.

Waldner emphasized that the initiative also came from the athletes' spokespersons in the Alpine sector. "The athletes' spokespersons Leif Kristian Nestvold-Haugen and Verena Stuffer came to me after the spring meeting and suggested the wildcard. It was discussed and decided a month later at the Council meeting in Iceland," he explained, adding: "They're teasing again. But that was a lack of communication and it was decided."