Clicca qui per la versione italiana
I imagined that sooner or later it would happen, and it happened today: I saw a race already started. I arrive late in Auer, and the shuttle doesn't leave right away. So I arrive at the car park with less than 10 minutes to go, and the road is long; now I can go a little faster than in recent days, but if I overdo it, my knee calls me to order. I arrive at the gates at the start time and discover that I'm not the only one who's late: there's a queue like I've never seen before. Given the situation, I start looking at images of the race on my phone. The queue then disappears in about ten minutes: the checks are quick.
Going up, when I reach the bridge overlooking the
track, I check to see if anything can be seen from there, but I see nothing. I
check and realise we’re in the break between the first and second relay skier
of each team. The format, in fact, has changed compared to the last World Championships I saw : there are no longer qualifying heats, but instead a
time trial similar to the individual race qualifiers, where the times of both
relay skiers are added together. The first Italian relay skier finished tenth, and
believing that only ten go through, I think she’s at risk, but then the
announcer says that fifteen qualify. We finish ninth overall.
This time, on the hill, I manage to get a place
in the front row, but when I arrive the women’s qualifications are almost over:
I only see the athletes in the final stretch and can’t work out how the track
is laid out or if there are other visible sections. Near me is a group of
Germans. Today, the most numerous group definitely seems to be the Swedes,
followed by the Norwegians. Then, besides the Germans, there are Finns, Swiss
(some with cowbells), French, Slovenians, Americans, and even a couple of
Brazilians (Brazil had a women’s team, finishing 21st out of 26). But the
Italians are far more numerous: this time the cheering will be loud. You can
spot fan clubs for both Pellegrino and Barp (naturally, Pellegrino’s is much
bigger).
After about ten minutes, the men’s qualifications
begin. I discover that you can see the initial part, with a short climb, then
after a while two bends, one uphill and the other, a little later, downhill,
and after another bit the final stretch. When the first two arrive, you notice
that the second, the American Ogden, has come very close to the first, the
Norwegian Hedegart, and in fact is ahead of him by 6 seconds (they start every 15). Barp, who started third, slots in between the two, the Frenchman behind
him seemed to have closed the gap, but actually he’s behind. I have to find out
the rankings from the announcers (one speaks Italian and French, another
English), because I can’t read them on the screen. Unexpectedly, Spain and
Australia slot into first and fourth respectively. Among the second relay
skiers, Klaebo sets the fastest time, while those for Spain and Australia don’t
match up to their first skiers. It ends with USA first, Norway second, Italy
third, Spain fifth, Australia ninth. Slovenia is the first not to qualify in
both the men’s and women’s: to think that in 2019 the women won a medal. The
best of the women would have finished ahead of nine men.
There is an interval of more than an hour. There’s no
queue at the kiosks or the shop: I get myself a muffin and buy a few more
things, after yesterday’s purchases, but I’m still missing something. For the
finals, there are no more front row spots: I settle for the second row, in a
more central position than in the morning. I struggle to see the two bends in
the first part of the track, but in exchange I can see the screen very well.
The women’s final starts: the group is already down to
12 after the first lap, then 10, then 8, with Italy the first behind them.
On the third lap Sweden begins to take a bit of a lead, which increases on the
fifth. On the last lap Switzerland (although, hearing the skier’s name,
for a while I think it’s Germany) moves up to second place, overtaking Finland
and closing in on Sweden. On the final straight it seems really close, but
there’s no more room to catch up. Finland, fighting for the bronze, falls at
the start of the last climb and is overtaken even by Italy, who finish eighth.
For the bronze, Germany edge out Norway on the line.
We move on to the men’s race: at the end of each of
the first three laps someone seems to drop off, but then at the beginning of
the next lap the group comes back together. On the fourth lap Spain drops off,
on the fifth Norway takes a small lead and Australia drops off too. At the
start of the last lap Klaebo pulls away, followed at a distance first by the
American Schumacher and then by Pellegrino. When they appear in the final
stretch, Norway’s lead is clearly unassailable, Pellegrino doesn’t seem far from
the American, but the fourth, the Swiss, is closing in menacingly. The places
remain as they are: Pellegrino wins bronze. It’s the fourth Italian medal I’ve
seen, and also the last, as I have no more races with Italians. In Turin I
saw one more, even though we had won fewer and I had only stayed a week. I think
it’s because the ticketing system then allowed for more targeted choices.
After the race, many head for the exit, but I go
against the flow to get something to eat. At the typical food kiosk, I get a
risotto with red wine and sausage: truly delicious, I didn’t expect to eat
something so good at an Olympic site. At the table, I meet two Swedes from
Stockholm. I move to the edge of the hill overlooking the stadium, now empty,
and watch the victory ceremony. When I reach the shuttle, I see that the one to
Tesero centre and Cavalese has a very long queue, but the one to Auer doesn’t
and never even fills up.
End of the mountain experience. Tomorrow, it’s back to
Milan.
Nessun commento:
Posta un commento