Petra Kronberger spoke about Mayer’s resignation

At 23, “Petra, the Great” had had enough. 30 years later, the resignation of Matthias Mayer and the upcoming World Cup in Méribel bring back memories for the Salzburg native. Kronberger returned to the Austrian Ski Association as women’s representative in 2015, where she currently heads the “Optimal Sports” department.

In the APA interview, Kronberger explains the challenges and opportunities that retiring from top-level sport brings with it, talks about the “crowning feeling” of her career and explains how she deals with athletes when they fail.

Matthias Mayer surprised with the abrupt end of his career. Do you see any parallels between your resignation and his resignation?

Kronberger: “I see parallels in that he ended his career just like me in the middle of the season, in a World Cup year. And almost to the day, only 30 years later. Matthias retired on December 29th, I retired on December 28th .”

Were you as surprised by his resignation as the general public?

“Yes, I was very surprised and take my hat off to the consistency, the courage and the great art of letting go. Perhaps the act of making the decision, apparently not informing anyone about this step in advance, was important to be able to walk this path all alone, in peace , without trying to change the mood from the outside. Like a kind of initiation for the new phase of life.”

How much can you put yourself in the shoes of the athlete?

“I think I can at least partially put myself in the place and think that the step was well thought out and Matthias didn’t make it easy for himself. Maybe the day came faster than planned. The image of a ripe apple comes to me the sense. You can tell it’s getting more and more mature, but there’s no telling exactly when it’s going to fall out of the tree.”

To what extent can or will his retirement affect the team environment?

“I think the one who is passionate about racing will soon have his focus back on everyday racing. The one for whom Matthias was a support, a mentor will miss him badly. That could change under certain circumstances (for a short time) also affect performance. In any case, such a loss has an impact on the team structure and atmosphere. Systemically speaking, every addition or departure of a team member influences the group – role-specific, emotional, conscious or unconscious.”

Do you know how it was in your case?

“For me, I had the feeling that while it was unfamiliar to my colleagues and the caregiver environment, it wasn’t that surprising since I had given the odd hint or two beforehand. It painfully confirmed the assumption that you were part of a large gearbox can be ‘replaced’ quickly.”

Asked what he would be most looking forward to right now, Mayer said “just live”. How do you make the transition as a top athlete to the “simple life”?

“The answer ‘live’ from Matthias touched me quite a bit. In addition to the beautiful and priceless opportunities that top-class sport brings with it, I felt the hardship, the pressure, possibly fears and renunciation. Being able to put that away after many years, can be like a liberation. Now he can discover the ‘other life’.”

What challenges but also opportunities does he face?

“The challenges are numerous: being cheered less, no longer being able to measure yourself against others by means of time, not being able to feel team spirit at the level of excellence, no structure for everyday life, less adrenaline rush, no immediate feedback on the work done, new talent and Finding tasks, giving life meaning, without being noticed by the public.But the possibilities are at least as great: draw from the full and sound out where else interests and talents lie, no longer ‘have to’ prove yourself, maybe start a family, less Pressure. Looking back on a highly successful career may give you some freedom later in life, which can be a great base.”

Were your Olympic victories in 1992 a major reason to quit? Would failure have persuaded you to continue back then?

“The Olympic wins were like a liberation for me. I could say that I achieved everything. They were a huge gift because they let me live a life after sport without having to regret anything in sport or maybe say to myself: I should have tried it again. Whether failure would have persuaded me to continue? I can’t say. Probably not. Because of the intensity of the successes in an extremely short time (in three WC seasons), the pressure, the With all the hype surrounding a young woman, I was drained. It took me a long time to process it.”

Especially when she fails, it becomes apparent how great the demands on Katharina Liensberger as a team leader are. In your current position, do you actively offer support in such situations, or do you deliberately hold back?

“I follow this situation and remember my time. If I don’t yet know how an athlete will react, I offer support carefully without being intrusive. You can tell immediately if someone shakes hands (an- ) accepts, or not. If not, then it’s about giving the signal that I accept and still keep the ‘door open’. You never know how processes will develop. I see myself for athletes and coaches: inside as one of several contact options, as a neutral position, occupied by a woman who was a top athlete and is sworn to secrecy.Sometimes this profile is exactly right for a (long) conversation in which they feel understood.It often doesn’t need more than time and listening.”

Can young women in 2023 distance themselves better from the pressure to perform than in your time? Or are the worries the same as in 1992?

“For some it is probably as difficult as it was 30 years ago. Others are very self-confident, have learned to listen to themselves and their bodies and are more confident in telling the trainer, the supervisor, honestly, how he/she is doing. In my day, skipping a race because of too much stress or fatigue was a no-go. ‘Exempting’ was somehow missing as an option. Today, I can only congratulate every athlete when they listen to your heart and realize that it is better not to race to save more damage. Believe me, when an athlete does something like this, it takes courage. The pressure on third parties is high and it feels bad to sit at home and watch the others race.”

What part did the Albertville 1992 Olympics make you who you are today?

“It’s a big part. Even today I’m asked about what happened 30 years ago. When someone asks: ‘Ms. Kronberger, may I ask you why you suddenly stopped back then?’ I’m always (happily) amazed. That the people at that time dealt so intensively with the sporting path, took so much interest. The successes of February 1992 will remain a part of me until Petra Kronberger is history at some point. They have fame, honor, contentment and freedom which I still feed on today.”

Does “Petra, The Great” still mean something to you almost 31 years later? And is the legendary Time magazine with you on the cover still hanging somewhere at home?

“Petra, The Great – I still feel honored. Because it’s very special to be on the cover of this magazine for once in your life. I’m still amazed today what the person who cared about me and chose that sentence as the cover photo. It feels(d) like it’s in the movies. Time magazine is still around, at home, in multiple issues.”

What memories come up when you think of the 1992 Olympics?

Kronberger: “The sunny memory is that the combi downhill was easy and what counted most was the feeling for the soft snow. In the combi slalom it snowed big flakes – on the day of the first gold medal. Then the picture in Time Magazine. Then followed the Downhill with rank 5 and 18 hundredths of a second behind the victory, the Super-G with a hundredth of a second behind the bronze medal, the failure in the giant slalom, the slalom victory on the last day, the second gold on a sunny, cloudless day again It was the crowning feeling my career.”