Aksel Lund Svindal, 2008–9 FIS World Cup champion and gold medallist at the recent Winter Olympics, reveals the importance of family and of friendly rivalries in his life and career.
Some people say that no amount of World Cup titles can compare to an Olympic gold medal. Is that how you feel?
No, I don’t think it feels that way for an Alpine skier. Our World Cup is big, especially the races in Austria and Switzerland. Olympics are very special, for sure, but it wouldn’t be the same winning it if you had never won anything else before and it was a ‘lucky race’.
Your first overall World Cup title was followed by a bad injury. Did you think at any point, ‘this is it,’ or were you always determined to come back and succeed again?
I always knew what I wanted to do, and that was to get back to the World Cup scene. What I was missing the most when I was injured wasn’t the feeling of winning but the lifestyle and all my friends on the tour.
Coming from such a strong skiing background, your family must be proud of what you’ve achieved?
Family are very important if you want to be a skier. You need help when you’re growing up with training, equipment and so on. I would never have been a skier if it hadn’t been for my family. They know what it’s all about, and I think that makes them enjoy it even more.
'I had lots of family in Whistler… It was great!'
Your grandparents were a big factor in your life after your mother passed away. Do you attribute your success in part to the support they gave you as a child?
The combination of having two kids who ski and not living close to a ski area makes you quite busy. When my mom passed away, my dad was a single parent for two kids who were six and eight years old, and we were both active skiers – he had a home to take care of and his own company to run. Fortunately, we’re a tight family and grandparents, other family and neighbours were very helpful.
What do you think you would have been if you’d not been a top skier? Would you have followed your father into business full-time?
I probably would have done something else that was competitive and where the amount of work you put in is reflected in the results – if not within some other sport then most likely in a business where my efforts would be crucial to the outcome.
Were your family and friends on hand in Whistler to help you celebrate winning your Super-G gold medal?
Yeah, I had lots of family in Whistler – my dad and his wife, my brother, and my uncle, aunt and cousins that live in Minnesota [over the border in the USA]. It was great!
There’s now a Facebook group set up to honour the Norwegian curlers’ outlandish outfits from the Games, and your kit is pretty garish, too. Was it another sportsman or team that inspired the clothing, or just an idea that came from nowhere?
Our clothing company is Japanese, so I suspect some Japanese designer had a big laugh at the office while creating our pants. I like them a lot.
'Rivals can still be friends even though there are Olympic medals or World Cups at stake'
How hard was it to adjust to getting back on the FIS World Cup circuit in Kvitfjell after the Olympic Games, and did home snow help?
It’s always tough to perform again straight after giving so much of yourself and experiencing something as big as the Olympics. Home snow in Kvitfjell helped some, but after the Olympics I’ve been struggling a little to get excited and on-edge enough to perform at my best.
You’ll still only be 31 when the next Winter Games come around in Russia in 2014. Do you think you’ve got another two Olympics left in your career?
[Laughs] I’m not thinking about that at all! Every day is exciting enough in itself – there’s no reason to think too far into the future.
You and Kjetil André Aamodt have been Norway’s big success stories in Alpine skiing over the years. Are there any Norwegian young guns coming through to follow in your footsteps?
Kjetil Jansrud [who won the silver medal in Giant Slalom in Vancouver] is looking very strong.
You’re regarded as one of the sport’s nice guys. How do you put aside your friendship with your rivals when you are all aiming to win the same prize?
You can still be friends even though there are Olympic medals or World Cups at stake. It’s a matter of having respect for other athletes and the work they put down to be good at what they do. If someone beats you because you make a mistake, then you have only yourself to blame. And if you did your best but still didn’t win, then it’s fair. Someone was better than you, so you need to train more, and probably also learn from what they do.
Visit Aksel’s official website at aksellundsvindal.com
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