Olympic champion Anja Pärson was too late in her career to compete. Now superstar Mikaela Shiffrin is demanding change.
Anja Pärson was sometimes too hard during her career. EPA/AOP
Too much schedule and pressure. So Olympic champion in alpine skiing and multiple world champion Anja Pärson42, encapsulates the brutal everyday life of the species.
Pärson ended his career in 2012. He says that he was so busy during the season that he didn’t have time to eat enough.
The Swedish star says he lost 5-7 kilograms during the season.
– It takes a lot of mental strength to stay on top and fight for victory all the time. It continues around the clock, Pärson tells Radiosporten according to SVT.
The opening of the ex-athlete is related to the ongoing heated debate. The star of the game Mikaela Shiffrin drifted off the racetrack at the end of January and was injured.
Raised by Shiffrin on his Instagram account pointed out that there have been a lot of injuries in the current alpine season. He believes that part of the reason is the huge load of athletes.
– More attention should be paid to the demands faced by elite athletes. Both in terms of the competition calendar, schedule and evening programs, Shiffrin writes.
– After the race, you have to take care of the media, which will last until the afternoon. The evening is packed, even though it’s the only 60-90 minutes of the whole weekend when we have time to eat or recover. It’s just too much. I believe that fatigue at this point in the season is one of the reasons behind the injuries.
Gave up
Mikaela Shiffrin believes that the crowded calendar has an effect on the background of injuries. EPA/AOP
Pärson also remembers fatigue from his own career. Once the Swedish star was so tired that he couldn’t give it his all on the slopes.
He gave up chasing victory.
– That happened once in my career. I was completely exhausted mentally. I had nothing to give, even though it was a double race in a lovely place. There was also a lot of audience. I just couldn’t take it mentally.
Shiffrin, on the other hand, has had to follow the injury drama closely. His spouse, an Olympic medalist in the sport Alexander Kilde was badly injured earlier in the year.