Former downhill skier Ralph Weber on the worst moment of his career: “I felt like cannon fodder!”

Marcel W. Perren And Sven Thomann

Ralph Weber has finally crossed the line. The Gossau resident lives in the Bregenzerwald in Austria with his girlfriend Andrea Hager and their two daughters Marie and Diana. His lady of the heart grew up in this region. “We agreed on a compromise when choosing where to live: Andrea gave me a village, I gave her a whole country,” says the thirty-year-old with a wink.

The 2021 Swiss downhill champion has built a beautiful house in the community of Au, which has a population of 1,673. Of course: with the prize money he has earned over the past eleven years, Weber, who has finished in the top 10 twice in his World Cup career, would not have been able to afford such a piece of jewelry.

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“I received 1,800 francs in 2020 for tenth place on the Lauberhorn. But I had some loyal individual sponsors to whom I will be forever grateful. And because I was allowed to live with my parents for a long time, I put some money aside.” His partner is also a successful entrepreneur.

Andrea Hager produces custom-made natural bed linen and was awarded the Innovation Award by the Austrian Chamber of Commerce in 2016. Since the Eastern Swiss announced his retirement from ski racing in Kvitfjell in mid-February after his 100th World Cup race, he has occasionally helped out in the company of his partner. In the medium term, however, he would like to start his own company. «When I was unable to participate in competitions last winter due to a back injury, I trained as a fitness trainer. I am currently training to become an athletics trainer. It is possible that I will become a self-employed entrepreneur in this field. But nothing is set in stone yet.”

That is why the willingness to take risks was lacking

Weber seems completely relaxed today. He is grateful for the way he was able to say goodbye to the ski circus. “I had great colleagues like Marc Gisin and Mauro Caviezel who had to leave the World Cup through the back door after suffering a severe traumatic brain injury. However, with the descent in Kvitfjell I was able to end my career nicely. Andrea and the two daughters were there live when I took part in my last competition in Norway. That was a wonderful, very emotional experience.”

But one question remains: why has this talented athlete, who won gold in super-G and silver in downhill at the 2012 World Junior Championships, never made it to the podium at the highest level? Insiders have repeatedly claimed that Weber’s intelligence slowed him down on the world’s most dangerous descents. Are they correct?

“Looking back, it is certainly true that David Poisson’s fatal training crash in 2017 was particularly close to my heart. I knew him well and liked him very much. His accident on a relatively easy training track in Nakiska made me realize how dangerous our sport is. And after suffering a number of injuries in my career, this season I had to admit to myself that I am not willing to take the full risk. There was no longer any will to take the next step.” Especially because after the birth of his children, Weber always knew at the start of the race “that someone was waiting for me at home”.

The consequences of refusing to vaccinate

One race in particular gave Weber pause. “That was in 2021 during the Hahnenkamm descent in Kitzbühel. In the second third of the race the conditions were so bad that they should have stopped after number 25 at the latest. But so that the race and Beat Feuz’s victory could be counted, the jury moved on to starting number 30. I had the 29 and felt like cannon fodder at first. In the first part of the route I was able to completely overcome myself. But then it got so dark that I said, “Friends, it’s not worth it for me today.” I then crossed the finish line far from the limit.”

This anecdote is typical of the 103 kilo man. He always says what he really thinks. With his honest character, he also lost some comrades during the Corona phase. “After I made it public that I would not be vaccinated and therefore not allowed to attend the races in Lake Louise, someone left my fan club because, in his opinion, I had refused to work.”

But Weber never regretted his decision. “I would do it exactly the same again. But for me, this topic has never been about imposing my opinions on anyone. But I did what was in line with my values.” And that is why Ralph Weber is at peace with himself even without a World Cup victory.