Marcel Hirscher: „Finally back to skiing“
After eight ski-free months, Marcel Hirscher has returned to the snow in the indoor ski halls of Zoetermeer in the Netherlands and Wittenburg in northern Germany. His verdict: “I enjoyed every moment.”
Back on snow
“My first days skiing in Zoetermeer and Wittenburg felt different from a year ago. I needed the time to fully recover from my knee injury and get my physical fitness back to the level I had set for myself,” explains Marcel Hirscher. He adds: “After eight months without skiing and the first sessions in the indoor ski hall, you obviously can’t draw any major conclusions yet, but you do get a feel for things. And it felt positive — finally back on the skis.”
Marcel Hirscher is carrying this momentum forward: “For the time being, I want to maintain the same level of strength and endurance training. When it comes to skiing, we’ll be relying on the training facilities that are available to us, and we’ll make flexible, short-term decisions about when and where to continue.”
A New Perspective on Indoor Skiing
When it comes to indoor ski halls, Marcel Hirscher has noticed a change in perspective. “It used to feel almost strange to go skiing indoors. Times have changed. When the entire hall in Zoetermeer is bustling with children learning to ski so they can enjoy a winter holiday in Austria, it’s quite inspiring. Part of the Dutch enthusiasm for skiing is born in these indoor ski halls.
“And to kick-off the on-snow training, especially in slalom, when conditions are uncertain everywhere else, the indoor ski hall in Wittenburg is a great option for athletes. There was probably some skepticism surrounding the first indoor tennis courts as well. I can easily imagine indoor ski halls becoming more relevant in our part of the world in the future, too.”
A Summer of Growth
It was a summer of positive developments not only for ski racer Marcel Hirscher, but also for the entrepreneur. “Balancing family life, running two companies and making a comeback after five years was a learning process for me. There was no one I could ask, ‘How did you manage to do it?’ — because the combination of circumstances is so unique.”
By now, everything has settled into a good rhythm, and the new VAN DEER-Red Bull Sports headquarters in Scheffau am Tennengebirge has been a game changer. “In the first few years, we were spread across five different locations. Now everything is under one roof, and I spend far less time in the car getting to meetings. Some of them can now even be combined with training sessions at the company.”
