Comebacks of Braathen and Hirscher put Brazil and Netherlands in Alpine skiing spotlight

SOELDEN, Austria (AP) — Two ski stars coming out of retirement have put the spotlights in the buildup to the World Cup season on Brazil and the Netherlands, two nations usually not associated with top-level racing.

Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, who raced for Norway until leaving the sport a year ago, and Marcel Hirscher, a two-time Olympic gold medalist who became the record eight-time overall champion while competing for Austria until 2019, have dual citizenship and will start for their mothers’ native countries in the new season, which kicks off this weekend with a giant slalom in Austria.

“I’m an athlete representing 200 million Brazilians. That chapter starts on Sunday. I won’t give up until that flag is raised, all the way to the top,” Braathen said on Thursday.

Son of a Norwegian father and a Brazilian mother, Braathen made his World Cup debut at 18 in December 2018 in a race that was won by Hirscher, who was competing in his final season. Braathen went on to win five World Cup races and he took the 2022-23 slalom season title.

One of skiing’s most vibrant personalities, known for painting his fingernails and having a taste for fashion, Braathen suddenly took a break from racing a year ago after a fallout with the Norwegian ski federation over his marketing rights.

He travelled the world but remained in touch with the sport as he got involved in the development of skis at his equipment supplier, Austrian-based brand Atomic.

“It’s been a very interesting year that is behind me, a year of exploring who I am and exploring my other interests,” Braathen said. “I’ve learned so much, and it’s been so interesting to be able to take a deeper dive into the industry of ski racing.”

In March he announced his comeback for Brazil, a federation that has not been represented in Alpine skiing’s World Cup since 2016. Neither has Brazil won an Olympic medal in winter sports.

“It’s kind of like starting this sport all over again, you are introducing the entire sport to a new target group,” Braathen said.

“What I find the coolest aspect of it is that I hope that this mission can transfer some inspiration to Brazil to show the people that you can come from anywhere and you can be whoever you are, and it doesn’t matter whatever your dreams are, there are goals to pursue.”

The team around him is led by his father Bjorn Braathen and includes former Hirscher ski coach Michael Pircher and physical coach Kurt Kothbauer, who previously worked with three-time reigning overall champion Marco Odermatt.

“Of course, I’m an athlete, a born winner. I’m not here for sixth, fifth or fourth places, I’m here for the podium and for wins,” said Braathen, who has lost his place in the favorable early start group following his year off.

His former teammate from Norway, Henrik Kristoffersen, believed Braathen could soon start winning races again.

“We trained together for two days on the race hill (in Soelden). He was not slow,” said Kristoffersen, a two-time winner of the World Cup slalom title.

“It certainly requires some adaptions as he starts with a late number. But other racers have been away with knee injuries for a year, and they were back at the top right away.”

Kristoffersen is going into his third season using skis from Van Deer-Red Bull, the brand founded by Hirscher after he ended his career at 30 in 2019.

Hirscher dominated the sport for a decade, racking up eight straight overall and 12 discipline titles and 67 race wins on the World Cup, and 14 medals from major championships.

While Braathen’s return to racing was no surprise, Hirscher’s announcement seven weeks later certainly was.

Calling it a “passion project” for one season rather than a comeback, Hirscher switched to the Dutch ski federation, stating he didn’t want to take a spot away from anyone on the Austrian ski team.

Also, his ski brand is not part of the pool of equipment suppliers approved by the Austrian ski federation, so Hirscher would not be allowed to wear his own equipment when racing for the nation he celebrated all his past successes with.

“For me, it makes no difference if I wear an orange race suit or a red-white-red one. I live in Austria, I feel Austrian, but I am happy to race for my mother’s country,” Hirscher said.

“For Holland, it’s a cool situation, especially for the Dutch ski federation. There is a youth department, but they struggle with resources, so I believe I can bring a bit of excitement and hopefully it will get a bit easier for those young talents in the Netherlands in the future.”

The best World Cup result so far by a Dutch skier came in December 2012, when Marvin van Heek placed eighth in a weather-affected downhill in Val Gardena, Italy.

Hirscher’s preparations for the new season were hampered as his team had to cut short a training camp in New Zealand due to unfavorable weather conditions in August, and he suffered from illness the following month.

It left Hirscher unsure whether he wanted to race in Soelden this weekend.

“I’ll see day by day, week by week, where this journey takes me,” said Hirscher, adding he didn’t have the 2025 world championships in his native Austrian province of Salzburg on his mind yet.

Thanks to a wild card rule introduced by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation in July, Hirscher has a guaranteed start spot after the top 30 without the hassle of having to qualify for the World Cup again through lower-ranked FIS races.

“The wild card is a cool thing for the sports,” he said. “I’m certainly not the only one making a comeback in the next five years. I am really looking forward to see who else is returning.”

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Eric Willemsen on X: https://x.com/eWilmedia

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AP skiing: https://apnews.com/hub/alpine-skiing