Odermatt: The Extra Effort He Put In For Val Gardena Successes

Summer instead of winter, prominent guests of honour, and the unveiling behind the successes.

During the presentation of the Val Gardena Südtirol Ski Trophy at the Fienile Monte mountain hut, a life-size 3D wooden bust of Marco Odermatt is unveiled. The Swiss ski star uses the festive backdrop in front of the Dolomites slope to reveal a secret to his success regarding his runs on the Saslong.

"It didn't work at all in the first few years"

On the technically demanding and extremely flat course, things didn't go as planned for the Swiss overall World Cup winner from the very beginning.

"It didn't work at all here in Val Gardena in the first one or two years," explains the 54-time World Cup winner.

The course characteristics initially caused enormous problems for the giant slalom specialist – which is why he resorted to drastic measures.

Custom-made for the Saslong

To pick up the necessary speed on the flat sections, fine-tuning was no longer enough. Odermatt arranged for extra effort regarding his equipment:

"I had to adapt a lot, change a lot about the equipment – yes, even build completely new skis, especially for this race."

Only with this custom-made special equipment did the desired success materialise.

Since then, Odermatt has impressed on the Saslong with remarkable consistency, securing eight podium finishes in the last four editions.

Dominant Win in the Special Classification

The reward for the meticulous preparation was also evident at the 58th Saslong Classic last December: With a victory in the sprint downhill and two second places in the Super-G and the classic downhill, Odermatt collected 260 World Cup points.

This secured him the Val Gardena Südtirol Ski Trophy dominantly.

In addition to the life-size wooden sculpture, the exceptional talent takes home 5,000 Euros in extra prize money, a short holiday in the region, and a guided tour of the Langkofel.