Steep passages, secluded curves, powerful jumps, very idiosyncratic artificial snow, changing winds – the 2950 meter long Olympic course in Yanqing demands downhill aces, the medal hunt on the Sunday (4 a.m., ORF 1) eagerly await, everything off. The so-called “Rock” is showing its claws, which was already apparent in the first (fall-free) training session, in which 18 of the 56 started with goal errors reached the finish line. It was more of a scanning, a location determination.
“Absolutely worthy of the Olympics, not easy, but really easy to drive,” was Vincent Kriechmayr’s first verdict: “It looked more difficult than it was. But if you go to the limit here, it can be a real challenge. Almost any Passage has its difficulties.” Anyone who adapts quickly to this has a clear advantage.
“It’s awesome”
For the athletes, the Olympic slope is completely new territory due to the lack of a dress rehearsal, which could definitely suit the 30-year-old Gramastettner. Because that’s how it was in February 2021 in Cortina d’Ampezzo, where the speed stars rode the “Vertigine” for the first time at the World Championships. As is well known, Kriechmayr became a double world champion. “Cortina’s character suited me very well, especially the upper part was curvy and demanding. It’s a bit different here, it’s the same for everyone,” explained the co-favourite, who feels at home in China.
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“We received a very warm welcome. Everything is perfectly organized,” said Kriechmayr. Visiting the “Rock” was an eye-opening experience – open-mouthed. “Unique, something completely new, I’ve never seen anything like it in the World Cup. It’s tremendous what they put there.” Postscript: “How they did it is another matter.”
In 2019, the ski area with three lifts and eleven kilometers of pistes in the Xiaohaituo Mountains northwest of Beijing was opened after the project was given the green light in 2017 despite severe criticism from environmental organizations. This “snow strip”, which is called the Olympic route, has spread in a breathtaking forest region with protected animal species such as golden and imperial eagles, Amur leopards and black storks.
High water demand
In an interview, the German geographer Carmen de Jong spoke of the “most unsustainable games of all time” and referred to the waste of water for the tons of artificial snow, which also had to be transported kilometers into the mountains via a huge network of pipes. Because of the drought and the susceptibility to wind, about twice or even three times the amount of water is needed for snowmaking than in the Alps. Not to mention the costs.
Yanqing definitely doesn’t have what it takes to become a classic of the future. Who knows if the World Cup circus will ever hit there after the 2022 Olympics? “Kitzbühel, Wengen, Gröden – you found that, it has developed over decades,” mused Kriechmayr: “Such routes would no longer be built today because you would say it’s too dangerous.”
The cards will be reshuffled in Yanqing, “the group of favorites is definitely larger” because there is a lack of experience here. And the unpredictable wind could become a factor. Nevertheless, there shouldn’t be a random Olympic champion.
Source: Nachrichten
