Alpine Skiingthe farewell of a champion
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It is now official, the salzburger champion salutes at just 30 years, after many triumphs and a thousand injuries. "I will miss all of this world." And she will be missed by fans with her infinite class.
Saturday 23 May 2020 20 minutes reading time
He left with his usual smile, aware that he had made an almost natural decision over the past few difficult years. Anna Veith officially announced the withdrawal from the competition, during the conference that in Schladming-Rohrmoos ended an era, that of one of the best skiers of the new millennium, one that for class and style is to be included in the category of top ever, she who since the youthful triumphs had been called the heir of the most successful Austrian athlete in history, Annemarie Moser-Proell.
Before turning 26 and that terrible injury in Soelden that changed his career, he had time to confirm the predictions by winning almost everything, with two absolute World Cups in series (2014 and 2015, combined with the crystal balls in giant), three world titles including combined, super-g and giant, the Olympic gold in super-g in Sochi and the double silver between the giant in Russia, also in 2014, and the incredible one of PyeongChang in super-g. With 15 successes and 46 podiums in the cup, without being able to win downhill despite a great competitiveness also in speed. A career at high levels perhaps too short for the boundless talent he has shown us, but still beautiful.
"I will miss all of this world, but I leave the competitive spirit of having given everything and having always tried even after injuries", Anna's first words in conference, with Alexandra Meissnitzer to accompany her (shortly the complete report on NEVEITALIA ).
And it will miss tremendously to all fans who have admired it for over 13 years in the white circus.
ONE FENNINGER CAREER AND ONE ... VEITH
We all knew her as Anna Fenninger, before she chose the surname of her husband Manuel Veith (ex snowboarder with whom she opened a hotel business, editor's note), married in April 2016 in Italy (in the church of Lana , in South Tyrol), starting from the 2016/17 season which saw her return to the circuit following the terrible accident that occurred in Soelden in October 2015.
It was that crash in the right knee, literally destroyed in training a few days after the opening, the real watershed of sporting life and not only of Anna, who started from little Adnet, in the heart of the Salzburg area that a few km away and only 3 months before his birth (which took place on June 18, 1989 in Hallein) he gave birth to a certain Marcel Hirscher. Just the champion of Annaberg is a childhood friend, since the two have attended the same ski college for years ("we were neighbors in the classroom", Marcel once said) and grew up between books and skiing.
Anna has amazed since her debut in the European Cup, at just 16 years old: 24th in the giant of Alleghe on 13 December 2005, the next day she is already second (6 cents from Kathrin Hoelzl) always between the wide doors and after another 24 hours fourth in slalom, on the snows of Zoldo. A versatility that is immediately evident, so much so that the first season on the continental circuit earned her the first of two triumphs in the general classification, then repeated in 2007. The first months of 2006 saw her putting two golds around her neck at the junior World Championships, in Quebec winning in super-g and combined (silver downhill), which will become four in 2008 on the Iberian snows of Formigal, when the Salzburger takes the title in giant and again in combined.
In the meantime, here is the debut in the World Cup on 11 November 2006 in Levi's slalom; for the first punticini, just wait for January 21, 2007 in a special place for Anna, who responds to the name of Cortina d''Ampezzo; 16th in the giant on the Olympia delle Tofane. The next two years are still divided between the European Cup and the World Cup, it still takes time to find physical, technical and mental stability to start staying constantly ahead. The first podium arrives "only" on January 26, 2009, coincidentally still in Cortina with a splendid 2nd place in super-g behind the Swedish Jessica Lindell-Vikarby. A few days will pass for the world debut, with the participation in the Val d''Isère event conquered with that result and the 4th place in the super-g of its first world championship which already says everything about a quality huge.
In 2010 the Olympic debut in Vancouver, but on the snows of Whistler Mountain not great satisfactions arrive, also because only from the 2010/2011 vintage Anna really changes gear.
Double podium in early January 2011, downhill and super-g between Zauchensee and ... the usual Cortina, then the two medals at the world championships in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, where they all beat in the super combined, starting from two champions established as Tina Maze and Anja Paerson, and is tinged with silver by contributing to the parallel team event of Austria.
The 2011/12 season is that of the consecration in the cup: six podiums with sprint start between Lake Louise and Beaver Creek (second and third in super-g), then the cry for the first success in the maximum circuit, on December 28, 2011 in Lienz beating a poker of champions, in the order Brignone, Worley, Rebensburg and Vonn. Remember that date, December 28th, because it will be a sort of talisman in the following years ...
The fifth place in the World Cup general classification is the preamble to the third obtained at the end of the 2012/13 vintage, topped with 8 podiums and three other victories; in Semmering in giant (precisely, December 28) and at the end of the season between Garmisch (super-g) and Ofterschwang (giant). The home World Championships in Schladming, however, are not very good since the then Fenninger had to settle for the giant bronze and nothing else.
Constancy of performance is now a reality and 2013/14 will mean a dream one-two: Olympic title and first World Cup, Anna enters the history of Austrian skiing triumphing in Sochi in the five-circle super-g in which Maria beats Hoefl-Riesch (and is silver for only 7 cents behind Maze in giant), then taking the crystal ball in the finals of Lenzerheide with the 2nd place in the super-g behind Lara Gut, a few hours after the injury of the same Riesch who will deprive us of the final duel. Anna legitimizes the "cup" also winning the final giant (11th podium of the season) after the two consecutive of Are of the previous week which had already been decisive in the final race. The first victory of that season, of course, had come on December 28 ... in the giant of Lienz.
The 2014/15 World Cup opening is perfect for the trophy holder: first triumph in the Soelden giant, ex-aequo with a very young Mikaela Shiffrin, then the beauty of six second places in the series (the famous December 28th lost the giant of Kuehtai, valid as a recovery, for only 9 cents in favor of Sara Hector) which still allow her to contain the fury of Tina Maze, who seeks escape to win her second cup.
In February the duel with the Slovenian is renewed at the World Championships in Vail-Beaver Creek: it starts with the super-g, with the Austrian gold for only 3 cents on Tina, who then returns the "favor" by beating for two only cents Anna in the splendid world descent on the "Raptor"; fourth in combined where the Maze still wins, for the Adnet native remains "his" giant. Anna paints a real masterpiece, trimming abysmal detachments to all rivals and finishing with 1 ”40 on Rebensburg (silver), despite a thrill in the final of the second heat. He would have won with almost two seconds on the German ...
Galvanized by the double world gold, Anna Fenninger descends into the battle of the World Cup aware that recovering over 300 points in a month of competitions will be very hard against a multipurpose like Tina Maze; on February 21, 2015 in Maribor, however, everything changes because the Slovenian misses everything on the weekend at home, Anna sensationally comes back to Rebensburg (burnt for 4 cents) and starts one of the most incredible endings in the history of the circuit. In Bansko nobody stops her, superg-combined brace (the only success in CdM after the 2011 world title), then the double podium in speed at Garmisch and we go to Are, where the Salzburg player still dominates in giant.
The finals of Meribel are a swing of emotions: second in super-g, Fenninger sees Maze overtake her by 18 points after the slalom on Saturday, but it is the ideal situation because it will be enough to stay ahead of the Slovenian, obviously on the podium, to take the second consecutive cup, the next day in giant. And so it will happen in the fog of the French track: first heats with the Austrian in front of the rival for 27 cents, in the second Brem exceeds Maze for 8 cents, but Anna must not be wrong going down last. All in one heat, which sees it impeccable between holes and very difficult conditions: triumph in the race with 38 cents on the compatriot and 46 on Maze, giant cup and general cup in your pocket. It is March 22nd 2015 and in fact it will be the last great day on skis for Anna.
Seven months later, on 21 October, a terrible injury in training in Soelden means a stop for almost a year, but above all a knee that will never return, devastated by the rupture of the anterior cruciate, patellar tendon, collateral and menisci. The recovery is slow and tiring, starting from the end of summer 2016 on the Stelvio and continuing with the return to the cup on December 27 of the same year in "its" giant, in Semmering. The first of the two sees her not qualify, the next day (always on December 28 ...) she returns to points with a 25th place. The light at the end of the tunnel is already visible the following month, when in his beloved Cortina he returns to the podium almost two years after Meribel: it is January 29, 2017 and Anna is third in the super-g won by Stuhec on Goggia. It is the first start from Mrs. Veith, but only a few flashes of the purest class will arrive in the following two years; the February World Championships in Sankt Moritz is not satisfactory, the 2017/18 season starts uphill but sees it treating itself and giving us, on December 17, the last triumph in the World Cup with first place in the Val d super-g '' Isère, clearly beating Weirather and Goggia.
Two months later, yet another career masterpiece seems to come true at the PyeongChang Games; the Olympic super-g on the snow of Jeongseon sees Anna in front of everyone, surprisingly, when all the big names have gone down and the podium is simply regal, with Weirather and Gut-Behrami behind him for a tenth. Instead, a single penny will be enough for Ester Ledecka to mock her, taking away the golden encore four years after Sochi. The 46th and last podium in the cup will arrive a few days later, on March 3, 2018 with the 2nd place in the super-g of Crans-Montana behind Weirather, then fate will get in the way again on January 12, 2019 in Pozza di Fassa, in a simple giant training that costs Anna the new crusader of the right knee, practically without falling.
Another 7-8 months stop, the return to Killington last season, the difficulties of not being able to go back there even if in Rosa Khutor, on the Olympic track in Sochi that gave her that wonderful five-circle title in 2014, will arrive however, a 7th place in super-g. The last ring, because seven days later (9 February 2020) will end everything in Garmisch, with the exit without consequences in the super-g of fear given the serious injuries of Goggia and Rebensburg. Anna could not yet know, having to explode the situation related to the Coronavirus, that this would have been the final performance of the 251 in the World Cup.
THE PALMARES
2 General World Cups (2013/14, 2014/15
2 Giant World Cups (2013/14, 2014/15)
3 world golds (Combined Garmisch 2011, Super-G and Giant Beaver Creek 2015)
2 world silver medals (Garmisch Team Event 2011, Downhill Beaver Creek 2015)
1 world bronze (Giant Schladming 2013)
1 Olympic gold (Super-G Sochi 2014)
2 Olympic silver medals (Giant Sochi 2014, Super-G PyeongChang 2018)
15 World Cup wins (11 Giants, 3 Super-Gs, 1 Combined)
46 podiums (19 second places, 12 third places) in 251 races
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