Clutch performance
It’s been a couple of days since the Maribor races and the big theme of the weekend was no doubt CLUTCH PERFORMANCE.
Tina Maze, one of the best Slovenian skiers had in recent years not lived up to her earlier dominance. She seemed to struggle in the 2 seasons after the 06 Torino Winter Games and so many probably wrote her off.
But this year, she’s come back with serious vigor and the country of Slovenia was abuzz with hopes that perhaps she could put in a strong showing at the Maribor races.
With all eyes on her, she came ripping down the mountain during Saturday’s GS, at every split in the green, the crowd roaring, every moment more energized than the last. Her first GS run put her solidly in the top 5 and the anticipation for the 2nd round was palpable.
There were thousands of crazy screaming Slovenians on hand. I don’t know what might have been going through her mind at the time, but I can imagine that many would be totally daunted by the whole experience: all eyes, all expectations on YOU! I mean, my success was more of a sneak attack. No one really pegged me to win the GS gold in Torino or even really end up 3rd overall in the 06/07 season, so I swooped in under the radar.
Tina on the other hand must have felt a ton of pressure. Well, if she did, then she really didn’t show it, because as soon as she charged out that gate, you could almost feel that victory was imminent. Each turn around a gate was confirmation of that and the crowd just exploded. 3 gates left, made it! 2 more, yes, 1 more… holy crap, she’s going to pull it off! She’s IN THE GREEN! The crowd is going nuts!
What a cool moment in skiing and a great moment for Tina and Slovenia.
Even in personal defeat (I didn’t do too well), I feel blessed to still be able to feel happiness in others’ success.
See you next time!
XOXO,
Jules