Kiwi skier Alice Robinson has left for Europe a few weeks earlier than initially planned. Photo / Photosport
Kiwi skier Alice Robinson has left for Europe a few weeks earlier than initially planned. Photo / Photosport
There's no definitive Alpine skiing World Cup calendar for next season yet but ace Kiwi skier Alice Robinson has left for Europe a few weeks earlier than initially planned to begin her preparations.
Robinson's 2021-22 campaign has been boosted by news her full team will be able to be withher and the financial burden on her family has largely eased.
Her Italy-based Kiwi co-coach Chris Knight has revealed the move back to lockdown restrictions in New Zealand prompted the 18-year-old's decision to effectively commit to nearly eight months in Europe.
"It was the uncertainty of what was happening in NZ, going into a lockdown with community transmission and not knowing how things would turn out with the freedom of movement," Knight said on the eve of the pair hitting the slopes for the first time in Austria overnight.
"We know up here we are cruising along as normal as we can and we are able to provide whatever she needs here with training before the World Cup season starts."
Robinson stunned the alpine skiing world last season by winning two of the six completed World Cup Giant Slalom races including the opening race in Soelden in Austria last October to announce herself as one of the best in the world alongside established stars like Olympic champion Mikaela Shiffrin, World champ Petra Vlhova and Italian star Federica Brignone.
The season-opening race has been brought forward a week to October the 17th in Soelden where Robinson will be defending champion and facing a completely different situation to last year when she was a rank outsider as a 17-year-old.
Knight says winning the last race of the season in Kranjska Gorain, Slovenia in February was so important and big for her confidence.
"Because she backed up the Soelden performance and there's no question when conditions are tough and it's steep and icy she's clearly the one to beat," Knight said. "There's also a couple of Italian girls that are tough in Federica Brignone and Sofia Goggia and hopefully we will get some training in with them leading into Soelden and that will really help to see where she's at."
Alice Robinson. Photo / Photosport
Robinson's stature is such that the funding issues of the past are largely behind her. Last season a majority of her costs were still covered by her parents but Knight has revealed Snow Sports NZ and a number of international sponsors are on board.
"They've really stepped up and it's getting a lot closer to our goals. If I look at where we were a year ago and where we are now things have really changed and are heading in the right direction. We are getting a lot of support from them (Snow Sports NZ) and a lot of support from other entities in Europe as well.
"It's still not at the level of other top athletes like Shiffrin, Brignone or Vlhova but she's only been one and a half years at that level and these other girls have been there a long time and have big structures behind them, but we are getting closer and closer all the time."
It's not just the funding that is in place for Robinson. She will be reunited later this week with other key members of her team in American co-coach Jeff Fergus and her equipment guru Pepi Culver.
The duo were denied exemptions to enter New Zealand this winter to be with Robinson but have received assistance from the Austrian embassy to get long term visas for Europe.
"The Austrians are ski racing oriented and understand the necessity for those guys to be here longer so we are expecting them within the week which will be very nice," Knight said.
Although the FIS calendar isn't confirmed yet Knight believes the entire season will be held in Europe. The early season North American races have already been cancelled because the travel is too risky and too difficult to control with all the different teams and nations.
"Here they are saying races we can drive to should be no problems and testing protocols will be in place and we have to live in our little bubbles for quite a long time. That's the reality they want to get the sport back on TV so no one forgets about it over a year," Knight said.
For now Robinson and Knight will reacquaint with each other, get back on the snow and get the fundamentals sorted.
"Then we can start testing equipment once the winter snow arrives. It was actually snowing at the weekend and it will come very soon and by September it will start to lie around and get colder. We will be travelling to a couple of different glaciers trying to get similar conditions and slopes aspects dialled in for Soelden and then it will be all go hopefully."
