"It's different"

Marcel Hirscher: “Don’t have to prove anything to anyone!”

Marcel Hirscher(Bild: GEPA)

Soon we'll know, soon we'll know whether Marcel Hirscher will be competing in the World Cup start in Sölden or not, and soon we'll know whether the former ski superstar can be a winning skier again - but with all the excitement and tension in the ski circus about Hirscher's return, the comebacker himself almost seems to be taking it the easiest! "The best thing is that I don't have to prove anything to anyone anymore!"

The 35-year-old Hirscher didn't speculate on whether, after 67 World Cup victories for Austria after a break of several years, he could also achieve success for the Dutch Ski Association on "Sport & Talk from Hangar-7" on ServusTV - he made no secret of the fact that he can live very well with his new freedom as his own boss and without pressure from outside.

"Having this freedom is just really cool!" 
"Whether I'm racing in Sölden or not, if I'm ready, I'm ready - and if I'm not, I'm not," said Hirscher, almost deeply relaxed. "Having this freedom is just really cool!" It's just different now than before, he says, he now has the freedom to decide. Even if he is "aware that it won't be an easy path ..."

"No longer with the intensity it used to be ..."
His dad Ferdinand is also "fully on board", there's no question about that. "When it comes to skiing, dad will always put his heart and soul into it." However, things are no longer like in the old days, when they worked together day after day, hour after hour, minute after minute to fine-tune the equipment. "Not with the same intensity as it used to be ..."