During the summer training session, Feller, Schwarz & Co. went underground at the Weißensee. Not everyone was comfortable with this adventure.
Adrian Pertl is not that easily upset. The 25-year-old from Carinthia is usually the calm person, this characteristic also distinguished him at the Ski World Championships in Cortina d'Ampezzo, when he did not have the big buzz despite the half-time lead in the slalom and Pertl raced for the silver medal despite his inexperience .
But when Adrian Pertl swapped his tried and tested skis for fins and was supposed to go underground at the Weißensee, Mister Cool was over. “I thought to myself: Ui, I have to go straight out again. It's not for me,” confessed the 25-year-old. “I was really hectic at the beginning.”
The Austrian slalom aces on unfamiliar terrain
To save the honor of the slalom vice world champion, it should be said: Like Adrian Pertl, almost all Austrian slalom stars felt at the training course at Weissensee. For most of them, the dive was more of a challenge than the steepest and iciest slalom slope.
“The first time is the most difficult. Above all, keeping calm under water. To be three meters under water is somehow strange,” said Michael Matt. And Fabio Gstrein from Ötztal (“it was all hectic”) feels more comfortable on ice and snow than under water. Especially since he did not see many fish during his dive as he had hoped. “You haven't seen much because we stirred up a lot of dirt with our rompers.”
Combined world champion Marco Schwarz cuts a fine figure with slacklining on the Weißensee
Combination world champion Marco Schwarz saw parallels between skiing and diving. “When skiing you also need that certain calmness, which is important here,” explained the Carinthian after the training course at the Weißensee and received approval from Manuel Feller: “The calmer and more relaxed you are, the easier it is for you and the less oxygen you need You too.”
