Super-G: Mauro Caviezel celebrates his first World Cup victory at 32

Victorious comeback: Mauro Caviezel celebrates his first World Cup victory at age 32

What a comeback for Mauro Caviezel: just six months after the ruptured left Achilles tendon, the Graubünden native wins the Super-G World Cup in Val d’Isère.

As the winner of the Super-G crystal ball last winter, Mauro Caviezel was the first to choose his starting number on Friday. The 32-year-old settled on No. 5, which should be ideal in tough conditions at the Savoy ski area. Caviezel still found a well-groomed track, and in this sprint, which lasted just over a minute, he already had important information that his teammate Marco Odermatt, who started first, was able to give him.

In the first half time, after nearly 15 seconds of driving, the next winner caught the next passages much better than his poor visibility competitors in the snowstorm. Only the Norwegian Adrian Sejersted was within a tenth of Caviezel. The third classified, the Austrian Christian Walder, was already 0.54 seconds behind.

“I am simply grateful”

In the winner’s interview with SRF, Mauro Caviezel was surprised, “because the day before in downhill training I didn’t feel good. I really didn’t think I would be doing that well in the first race. It is simply amazing. “The Swiss also spoke of the fact that visibility was difficult. ‘It was a flat light, so little visibility from the ground. In the Super-G, the pace is always difficult to assess. Still, you have to attack and push hard. door to door “.

For Caviezel, the plan worked perfectly. Nor did he forget to thank his doctors and physical therapists. “I’m just grateful for all the support from the people who made this possible and pushed me through.”

Achilles tendon tear in June

What makes Mauro Caviezel’s first World Cup triumph even more special: after a tear in his left Achilles tendon that he only suffered in June during physical training, the winner of last year’s Super G discipline he contested his first race of the season. He contested his first race at the top level in March 2008. At that time it was a slalom in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia, with the 66th start high, the teenager from Graubünden was eliminated in the first race.

Meanwhile, Mauro Caviezel, whose younger brother Gino also competes in the World Cup, has become a successful sprinter after numerous injuries. He stepped onto the World Cup podium ten times before his winning debut, first in March 2017 in Aspen as third. A month earlier he had won bronze at the combined World Cup in St. Moritz behind world champion Luca Aerni and Austrian Marcel Hirscher.

First departure on Sunday

The second best Swiss in the Super-G in Val d’Isère was Beat Feuz (0.91 seconds behind), who was just 15 hundredths behind fourth place. Odermatt lost a good second to his victorious teammate in 13th place. World Cup points were also awarded to Urs Kryenbühl (20th), Stefan Rogentin (24th) and Gino Caviezel (26th). The first winter descent of the 2020/21 World Cup will take place on Sunday in Val d’Isère, also on the Oreiller-Killy track. (bal / ram / sda)