Pirmin Zurbriggen's celebrity rose almost immeasurably in the 1980s - in 1990 he had enough of the hype and retired at the age of 27. He has never regretted it, even though he had to leave the ski throne to Marco Odermatt. He can now sympathize with him.
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- Pirmin Zurbriggen's popularity skyrocketed with his victory in the 1985 World Championship downhill, which was preceded by weeks of anxiety about the "knee of the nation".
- "Everyone always wanted something from Pirmin. I had less and less time to seriously prepare for the competitions, especially physically. At some point I was burnt out." Zurbriggen can therefore sympathize with Marco Odermatt.
- He is often asked whether he regrets his early retirement because he was replaced by Odermatt as the most successful skier, says Zurbriggen and laughs. "It has to be right for you. And it's right for me."
At some point, it just became too much for him. The media, the fans, the training sessions, the packed World Cup calendar, World Championships, Olympic Games, Swiss Championships, advertising appointments. Pirmin here, Pirmin there, Pirmin everywhere. Pirmin Zurbriggen, the Valais ski icon, retired in 1990 at the age of 27 - after 40 World Cup victories, four World Championship titles, one Olympic victory, four large crystal globes for overall World Cup victories and around a dozen small crystal globes for victories in discipline rankings. "I said to myself: enough is enough. Enough is enough."
Zurbriggen's popularity suddenly skyrocketed in 1985. With his victory in the World Championship downhill in Bormio, which was preceded by weeks of suffering and anxiety about the "knee of the nation", the then 22-year-old from Valais was thrust into the public spotlight overnight. Not that the interest bothered him in principle - it just became so much that he found it increasingly difficult to do what he actually liked best: training, skiing, doing sport.
His wish? Just to ski...
"Everyone always wanted something from Pirmin. I had less and less time to seriously prepare for the competitions, especially physically. At some point I was burnt out." He can therefore understand very well what is happening to Marco Odermatt, says Zurbriggen, "it takes up an incredible amount of energy."
According to Zurbriggen, there was another reason why he quit so early. He has "a wonderful wife" by his side; he has been married to Monika since 1989. And the ski star was also soon a father, now of five children. "When you're a professional skier, you have to focus 100 percent on that. Otherwise it's no good. But I realized that I was neglecting important things at home." At some point, it was no longer worth it for Zurbriggen.
If it had been like the US racer Bode Miller once dreamed, Zurbriggen would not have resigned. "I just want to ski, nothing else," said Miller. An illusion in the age of the media. For Miller as well as for Zurbriggen.
Never regretted retiring
Has he ever regretted his early retirement - especially as Marco Odermatt has now overtaken him in the World Cup statistics with 53 victories? Zurbriggen laughs and says: "I get asked about that all the time. But no. It has to be true for everyone. And it was true for me. If I had continued, I might not have been able to build up such a lively family and probably not a hotel either. And I'm not one of those people who look back and wonder what would have happened if..." He prefers to leave that to journalists.
