One is a two-time Olympic champion and was already Austria’s athlete of the year. The other won the downhill ball and is the ÖSV runner this winter with two victories this season: snowboarder Anna Gasser and downhill skier Cornelia Hütter are among the most famous faces in Austrian winter sports. Home World Cups await both of them in Klagenfurt and St. Anton at the beginning of the year.
KURIER: What requires more courage: throwing yourself down a downhill slope at 130 km/h or flying through the air on a snowboard?
Anna Gasser: That’s hard to compare. I think both require a lot of courage. I just feel more comfortable in the air and couldn’t imagine skiing downhill.
Cornelia Hütter: I prefer to stay on the ground and try to get faster and faster. It would definitely take more courage for me to throw myself over a kicker than to drive down a slope at 130 km/h.
Speaking of courage: your careers were repeatedly interrupted by injuries. How did you manage to come back even stronger?
Anna Gasser: Injuries are part of sport, unfortunately that is the case. Over the years I have learned to deal with it better and now allow my body time to heal. I used to be much more impatient.
Cornelia Hütter: Injuries and comebacks were also a big topic in my career, but I don’t want to downplay that, it’s just part of it. I’ve learned to accept it and it’s fine the way it was. Of course, the moments where the injuries occurred were often very, very difficult. But looking back, it helped me grow as a person not only on the slopes but also off the slopes.
At 32 and 33 years old, you are both veterans of the scene: To what extent does experience inhibit your willingness to take risks?
Cornelia Hütter: If you have already experienced and seen a lot, then that can of course inhibit you at certain moments. But especially in the speed disciplines, routine, for example when it comes to routing, is a significant advantage. If you can read the area on the first inspection and know where to go, this will help you significantly. I see the routine as a plus point that I have developed.
Anna Gasser: Back then, my younger self didn’t think about what might happen if I made a mistake. I just wanted to show my best snowboarding and didn’t think about any consequences. But the last few years have shown me that I have to pay a lot of attention to my body. Today I think very carefully about when I try which trick. I certainly approach things more consciously and see everything much more calmly.
So routine is king?
Cornelia Hütter: Especially as a boy, you want to show everyone. I can speak for myself; at the beginning of my career I was often over the limit. But it takes a combination of good skiing and a certain willingness to take risks. This is something you have to learn, although mistakes can always happen in a high-performance sport.
Anna Gasser: The motivation to always want to develop myself has become a certain routine over the years. I do think I gave myself an advantage.
Cornelia Hütter: I have learned to gain confidence in myself from setbacks. It has to be right for me, I don’t have to prove anything to anyone. I can now deal with external pressure very well; it even makes me faster. That is certainly an advantage.
Speaking of pressure: You both have home competitions waiting for you in Klagenfurt and St. Anton in the next few days – can the home advantage also become a mental strain?
Anna Gasser: Of course, the attention and excitement at home is a little greater than usual, but the joy of driving in front of the home crowd outweighs it. That’s always something special. The pressure from outside can often be great, but I have learned to deal with it and can now block it quite well.
And a home World Cup is probably another matter.
Cornelia Hütter: Last year we had the opportunity to train on the World Cup slope in advance, and it was pretty good at the World Cup final, where we were able to make good use of the home advantage as a whole team. What it will be like at the World Cup remains to be seen. The route is a little different and therefore new for everyone, so it will be all the more important to find the right line from the first training session onwards.
What status do you have as winter sports enthusiasts in Austria?
Anna Gasser: In Austria I now receive more attention than in other countries, including in the media. That’s why the popularity here is greater, but of course there are also moments where it’s a bit too much for me. So I’ll just make sure I get away unnoticed. But now some people know me beyond the borders. Especially in the USA, where freestyle snowboarding has a completely different status.
Cornelia Hütter: Austria is certainly a winter sports nation, skiing is very important in this country, but that doesn’t make me feel like a star, it’s not good for me. I am who I am, regardless of whether I lose or win.
Skiing is currently experiencing many comebacks: How difficult will it be for you to let go?
Anna Gasser: I have now achieved many of the goals that I set for myself. With that said, I don’t think it will be difficult for me to let go. I will continue to be involved in snowboarding even after my competitive career. There are still many areas that I would like to do and learn.
Cornelia Hütter: Skiing is my job and determines my daily routine and my life. It will be difficult to find something as fulfilling again, but of course I hope that something will come along that will give me as much joy. As long as I have fun and can perform to the fullest, I want to ski. When the moment comes when I no longer feel it, that’s it for me.