"A return of Marcel? Never say never". Word to Mike Pircher, the coach who led Hirscher to win everything

Together with his father Ferdinand, the Austrian technician was the key man in the successes of the Salzburg ace.

Monday 9 September 2019 3 minutes reading time

Coach Michael Pircher, for all Mike, is a "behind the scenes" man, but in reality it was one of the keys that led Marcel Hirscher to open all the doors of a phenomenal career. A native of Schladming, 44, the Styrian coach has worked side by side with the King of the World Cup since 2011, when Marcel began building a private team around him, changing at most a few pawns over the years to level of coach or skiman. Speaking to the "Kronen Zeitung", Pircher clearly dwelt on the recent announcement of the man he supported towards the victory of eight consecutive World Cups: "Marcel won everything, he is tired and in this sense the decision was the right one . It was all so fast that it will take time to realize what has been done, of course we are all proud to have been part of these incredible successes ". In recent days, federal president Peter Schroecksnadel had spoken, in addition to the possibility that Hirscher was involved in projects such as a ski school, of the relocation of the same Mike Pircher and Ferdinand Hirscher within the national teams, so as not to disperse the enormous human heritage given the experience and knowledge in terms of materials and technique of two such characters. In particular, the Schladming coach would act as an interface between the European Cup and the World Cup for many young athletes: "It is a possibility - explains Pircher - and a task that would be very interesting. I would like to stay in the environment and on the snow again ". And to the question of whether there is a possibility that Hirscher might think of a return to the track, perhaps after a sabbatical year, the historian coach answers: "I think Marcel will get bored in winter, it would be normal and even a bore ... positive. At the moment I can't imagine him competing again, but sometimes the idea may come. Never say never".

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