First the big comeback, then the cruciate ligament rupture. Marcel Hirscher's career seems to have come to a definitive end last winter. Or maybe not?
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Marcel Hirscher made a much-noticed comeback last winter.
- He tore his cruciate ligament back in December and missed the rest of the season.
- Now he reveals that he would like to return to the World Cup once again. However, there are still a few hurdles to overcome.
Marcel Hirscher's comeback made huge waves last winter. The eight-time overall World Cup winner is returning to the ski circus five years after his retirement.
At the season opener in Sölden, he actually scores his first points in his eagerly awaited comeback - in the giant slalom, the dominator of days gone by, who now competes for the Netherlands, finishes 23rd and says afterwards: "It turned out much better than I thought." The two following races ended in disappointment. But Hirscher continued to work hard.
Then, on December 2, came the big injury shock: Hirscher tore the cruciate ligament in his left knee during training on the Reiteralm. It was a fall that he said he had experienced a thousand times before without injuring himself. Whether he will return to the slopes again is completely uncertain at this point.
Will Hirscher get back into the World Cup action?
On Monday evening, the 36-year-old talks about his "day-to-day" progress in the recovery process in the "Sport und Talk" program on ServusTV. "With the cruciate ligament, rehab has a meaning, it goes a little bit further every day. Today I was able to jog a bit for the first time."
And is he planning a return to the World Cup? "I might, but it still needs a few little things to make sense. I feel like I have a puzzle in front of me that is actually already quite full," says Hirscher.
The Olympic Games are also a major highlight on the horizon. However, Hirscher is not particularly motivated to give it his all once again: "I've never been a particular fan of the Olympic Games. From that point of view, it's not a priority at all. Schladming, Kitzbühel, there's more going on there."
Whether as a racer or hobby skier, Hirscher wants to return to the slopes one way or another. According to the doctors and therapists, he should be able to make his first turns again from September. And he is really looking forward to that.