Zuzulova & Vlhová: Skiing Joy & Celebrations

BRATISLAVA/FLACHAU – In the gloomier circumstances of the current situation, Slovak skiing is commemorating the tenth anniversary of the biggest success of traditional industries up to that time.

On January 15, 2016, Veronika Zuzulová triumphed in the night slalom of the World Cup in Flachau, Austria, Petra Vlhová was third, and for the first time in history two Slovak women met on the podium.

Today, Zuzulova has not competed for a long time, and a question mark hangs over the triumphant career of Vlhová, who was unfortunately injured two years ago. After a long break, her protection coefficient gradually fell in the SP start list, and on the first Sunday of January, after the race in Kranjska Gora, she formally dropped out of the top 15.

If she returned to the competitive slopes in the Tuesday night slalom, her starting number would still be drawn between 8 and 15, because the Austrian Liensberger was out of the order after a fall and injury.

Will he make it to the Olympics?

However, Petra Vlhová was also absent in Flachau and dropped to 20th place in the starting ranking after the seventh slalom of the season. If she starts in the slalom general at the Olympics on January 25 in Špindlerův Mlýn, she would go with the number 19 in the 1st round, which is more disadvantageous than, for example, the possible drawn number 8 or 9, not to mention the numbers 1-7, with which she rode in the SP for almost ten seasons.

If, after a two-year hiatus, Vlhová goes to the premier slalom directly on the Olympic slope, her starting number will definitely be even lower, the value of the further drop would depend on the results of the WC races in the Krkonoše mountains and on whether any of the opponents will be eliminated by illness or injury.

The shift thanks to the national quota of a maximum of four female competitors is only marginally in play, currently none of the slalom powerhouses has five female skiers in the top 30 of the starting ranking.

There is still no information on when Vlhová will return or if it will be this winter. However, her rankings ensure Slovakian women, in addition to the automatic national one, two more Olympic spots, as she remained in the top 30 of the giant slalom starting ranking even after the first Saturday of January (she is in 28th position).

After last Saturday in Adelboden, it is clear that the men will remain in one place for the February Olympics, because the deadline for FIS-places according to the WCSL is after the upcoming weekend competitions in sliding disciplines in Wengen and Tarvisio.

The men have one slalom there, but even in the case of a start, no Slovak competitor has a chance to change that. The country thus has a total of four places, and the authorities of the Slovak Skiing Association will decide on specific downhill names for Cortina d’Ampezzo.

Ten years ago, when Slovakian downhill skiing had two top slalom skiers in great form, there was no peak event in the season, because the World Championships are in odd years and in 2016 there was not even a Winter Olympics.

However, both Slovaks enjoyed themselves in Flachau, and the poor snow conditions for the organizers in Ofterschwang, Germany, were lucky for them. The Flachau center, which is a testament to Slovakian slalom, was willing to jump in and on Friday and Saturday both spinning disciplines were replaced after the classic Tuesday night slalom. Already in it, on January 12, Zuzulova won and Vlhová was sixth.

Slovakia on the skiing map

Three days later, on January 15, 2016, the two met for the first time on the stage of the World Cup race, something that had never happened to independent Slovak skiing in any of its branches before. At that time, 31-year-old Veronika Zuzulová won the slalom with a lead of two tenths over Swede Frida Hansdotterová and 53 hundredths ahead of 20-year-old Petra Vlhová. For the winner, it was the fourth triumph in the SP race and the third in the slalom.

It looked promising already after the 1st round, Zuzulova was 17-hundredths of a second behind the leading Frenchwoman Noensova, and Vlhová, in fifth position, did not have a big loss on the podium.

“I went into the second round with the goal of going as aggressively as possible. I was satisfied with my position before the second round. I think it was even better than on Tuesday, it’s true that Nastasia overtook me in the first round today, so there were some reserves, but it suited me that I had to attack. That I had to fight it out.

I felt great comfort on the track. I also failed in Flachau, now it worked out and I’m glad that so did Petre. Peta and I support each other, and although she says that she can’t get along with everyone, the two of us probably have compatible personalities.” Zuzulová made a name for himself for TASR in the mix zone ten years ago.

Vlhová also shone: “When Veronika was first and I was third, I knew that only Nastasia Noensová could prevent it. Finally, it worked out and we are very happy. I didn’t like to comment on these things in advance, but now that it was done, I was going to jump out of my skin.”

And the young slalom comet did not forget to emphasize: “Our successes are primarily due to the fact that we have great parents. They supported us from a young age and never gave up. After the first New Year’s slalom in Santa Caterina, Veronika and I said that it must work out with a joint podium in Flachau, and it worked out.”

A visionary feeling

The winner of the triumphant Slovak slalom ten years ago in her euphoria also expressed a downright visionary feeling: “I think that in every slalom, something will happen from Slovakia’s point of view that has not been here before. I heard that it now has a large, almost record-breaking viewership here at home, so it’s something amazing. Skiing is becoming popular and I’m glad that we helped it with our results.”

Two years later, the two met again on the levels, even on the two highest, and in January 2017 in Zagreb, Veronika Zuzulová celebrated her fifth and last victory in the SP race with a lead of 24 hundredths.

She missed most of the next season due to injury and ended her career after the 2018 Olympics. At that time, the scepter of the pioneer of unprecedented successes in Slovak skiing was already taken over by Petra Vlhová, and even in the era of Mikaela Shiffrinová, she became a global phenomenon in her sport.

• Author: © List/
• Source: TASR