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The Piedmontese champion celebrates a special birthday ... on the track: driving the young blue and the microphone a new exciting career like the one on skis.
Tuesday 26 November 2019 7 minutes reading time
Always in attack, with a constancy and generosity lasting the beauty of sixteen seasons at the highest levels of the white circus.
For this reason, people loved Max Blardone and still appreciate him as a columnist at Rai, to which he landed as soon as I hung up my skis in 2016, for that passion that springs from all the pores.
Today the Piedmontese champion celebrates 40 years and it is right to celebrate it in the best way, remembering what he has done and is still doing for the whole movement, given that he is now leading the young Azzurri (not surprisingly, even on this special day he is in track with his boys in Santa Caterina Valfurva ...) after battling with some of the greatest gigantists in history.
He beat them seven times, as many as his World Cup victories (with 25 podiums in total, all in giant), crossing the era of Hermann Maier and Michael Von Gruenigen, of Stephan Eberharter and Bode Miller, Benni Raich and Aksel Lund Svindal, up to those who took all the crystal spheres in the last decade between the wide doors, namely Ted Ligety and Marcel Hirscher. He would have deserved an even better palmares, the "Blarda" from Pallanzeno, for its completeness and the ability to adapt to various changes of materials, tracks and tracks, given that the giant of the 2000s was one thing and that post 2012 ... another one.
On October 29, 2000 the debut in the World Cup in Soelden, immediately 20th in the first of its 153 races in the maximum circuit, and in the final of that first season among the "big" an extraordinary 5th place on the occasion of the world giant Sankt Anton, with the best time in the 2nd round. Unfortunately, there will never be a medal, neither at world level nor at the Olympic level in the three five-circle entries, with the eighth place in Salt Lake City 2002 and the great disappointment represented by Torino 2006.
And yet, when he won there was always something special, like January 11, 2005 on the occasion of his first triumph: Adelboden, the terrible final wall and Super Max that plunges into the oceanic crowd of Chuenisbargli, burning Bode Miller and Kalle Palander, not really the latest arrivals. All this, ten years later, the pearl of Alberto Tomba on the legendary Swiss track.
Tomb that is an absolute idol for Blardone, able as few to take inspiration from all the great champions to grow day after day. He will closely observe Ligety, to go and take "the" giant track, the Gran Risa three times: in Alta Badia three memorable successes and challenges with the "twin" Davide Simoncelli, those shivering from thrill and the trophy raised to the sky in 2005 , 2009 and 2011. Triumphs that will not suffice to bring home that giant World Cup touched several times (twice second and twice third), especially in 2007 with the mockery of Lenzerheide, when Blardone yields for 21 cents to Svindal , who wins race and crystal ball when Max would have been enough to stand in front of the Norwegian.
The last gem on February 26th 2012, with a paw in Crans Montana right in front of the young Hirscher, who was on his way to his first World Cup; then the change of materials, the oblivion of years that seemed eternal, even though Max still trained like a madman and didn't feel the weight of years, physically and in his mind. No Games in Sochi, no World Championships in Vail in 2015, with first experience at the microphone to "dispose" of the disappointment, but the last season will show all the pride of the champion.
The Piedmontese, in fact, almost four years from that day in Switzerland, returns on a podium of the World Cup with the 3rd place in the giant of Yuzawa-Naeba, lighting the Italian night as a light in the greyness of an Italian giant already in difficulty. E 'February 13, 2016 and the old captain, a month later (March 19) will play the last race, still going to points in the test of the giants of Sankt Moritz, greeting everyone at the parterre, with family in tow and a lot emotion.
Then, for the last time, the arrow shot from his bow, aimed at people's hearts. The one that has conquered forever.
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