“Eliasch completely overrated skiing”

The criticism of FIS chairman Johan Eliasch (61) is getting fiercer! After almost two years in office, the British-Swedish billionaire received the worst interim report from his former election assistant Peter Schröcksnadel (81). “I voted for Eliasch at the time because I believed that as a successful entrepreneur he would bring new, profitable ideas to skiing. But now I’m sorry to say that he has absolutely no idea about this business,” muttered the former president of the Austrian ski association ÖSV in an interview with Blick.

Ski doldrums on US TV

The Tyrolean feels fooled by Eliasch, not least because of the two men’s World Cup races last weekend in Palisades Tahoe (USA)! “I only agreed to the proposal to go to North America for the second time this season after the World Cup because Eliasch announced that these races would be broadcast live on American television. A live broadcast on NBC would actually be great advertising. have been for skiing.” But nothing came of that. In fact, there was no live ski broadcast on the American TV giant over the weekend. Saturday’s giant slalom was broadcast 24 hours late on NBC in a partial tap. Sunday’s slalom will not be shown on screens until next weekend.

However, the FIS disagrees with Schröcksnadel. At the FIS board meeting, Eliasch only confirmed that NBC would provide an hour’s coverage each weekend of the technology races at Palisades Tahoe and the speed races at Aspen. The actual broadcasts “exceeded even what President Eliasch communicated” and were “a good start to attracting large viewers in the US”. According to a spokeswoman for the FIS, Peter Schröcksnadel’s statements “simply do not correspond to the truth”.

Even Yule finds it next to it

Our slalom topper Daniel Yule (28) strongly condemns the Eliasch idea of ​​two North American tours in one winter, especially from an ecological point of view: “This is absolutely crazy for me! The speed demons fly overseas for the second time this winter, we slalom specialists for one race. This kind of travel no longer suits our time.” In an interview with Sonntagsblick, Eliasch defended his strategy as follows: “We want to be a global sport. And the US market is huge and important. And from an ecological point of view, the extra trip across the Atlantic Ocean is not very important compared to other items on our climate balance sheet.”

“This is absolute stupidity”

Schröcksnadel shakes his head: “Eliasch completely overestimates itself, but also the sport of skiing. Interest in alpine racing is very limited. Football, baseball and basketball are untouchable in the US, and even King Soccer has not really established itself there. In Asia it is comparable. That is why we should mainly focus on the market where skiing can get the masses moving. And that is, after all, Europe.”

Outside the old continent, only the races in Canada and the US at the end of November and the beginning of December made sense for Schröcks Nadel. “Mostly because it’s minus 20 degrees in North America right now. But to fly there twice a season under the current conditions is absolute stupidity.” After the giant and slalom in Palisades Tahoe (California), the speed specialists compete two downhill runs and a Super-G in Aspen (Colorado) this weekend.

Source : Blick