After a serious knee injury
“Painful time”: Ski ace with tearful interview
October 27, 2025 – 10:23 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
Emotional comeback from Marco Schwarz: At the World Cup opener in Sölden, the Carinthian came in second – and let his tears flow freely after the race.
The start of the Alpine World Cup in Sölden could hardly have gone better for the Austrian athletes – at least almost. After Julia Scheib’s success in the women’s race, Marco Schwarz only had to admit defeat to one man in the men’s giant slalom: Marco Odermatt. The Swiss narrowly prevailed on Sunday, with only 24 hundredths of a second separating him from the Austrian.
Despite the wafer-thin deficit, Black’s joy prevailed. For the 30-year-old, it was the first podium finish since his slalom victory in Madonna di Campiglio on December 22, 2023 – a strong result that is all the more significant after a long period of suffering. Schwarz had seriously injured his knee and stated that he didn’t know for a long time whether he would even be able to return to the World Cup.
In the interview after the race, Schwarz appeared emotional. He spoke openly to ORF reporter Rainer Pariasek about the difficult phase. Tears flowed as he thanked those who supported him during his injury layoff. Schwarz explained: “It was an incredibly hard and painful time for me.” He often doubted himself and put himself under enormous pressure to make the comeback.
From his point of view, the preparation for the new season was also not ideal. “I was never among the fastest,” said Schwarz. However, in the last few days he has worked intensively – with visible success. He viewed the entire team’s performance in Sölden as a clear sign: “We don’t need to hide from anyone, we saw that today.”
As far as the fight for the overall World Cup is concerned, Schwarz is still cautious. A direct comparison with Odermatt is currently out of the question for him. “I have to perform in three competitions,” he stated. While giant slalom and super-G seem promising, the six-time World Cup winner in slalom is still skeptical. His starting position there is difficult due to the start list.