:00:53. > :01:01.They say only children are afraid of the dark. As it closes in and
:01:02. > :01:07.surrounds you. Your brow sweat in, your heartbeat racing, the sound of
:01:08. > :01:12.nothing pounding your senses. The silence, then the screams. Darkness
:01:13. > :01:17.as you burst into the bright lights. Push against the wall of ice, slice
:01:18. > :01:23.through the fear. Only commitment will see you through this. Fortune
:01:24. > :01:31.favours the brave. There can only be one winner here. This is Schladming,
:01:32. > :01:37.where the night is dark and full of terrace. -- full of terror.
:01:38. > :01:45.It is close to midnight, something evil is lurking in the dark. You
:01:46. > :01:51.might have guessed that we are at the fearsome Schladming night slalom
:01:52. > :01:55.. Stay tuned. It is going to be a thriller. She has four X Games
:01:56. > :01:59.medals and she is the reigning Olympic halfpipe champion, and she
:02:00. > :02:03.is going for an ambassador did three medals in Sochi. The future is
:02:04. > :02:06.bright for the Antipodean queen of snowboarding, Torah Bright. And in
:02:07. > :02:11.our last show before the games, it is the British speed demons in the
:02:12. > :02:18.sliding events that our our tsars in the making arguably our best chance
:02:19. > :02:21.of medals in Russian mountains. But before all that, this is the last
:02:22. > :02:26.slalom event ahead of the Winter Olympics in Sochi, and there is one
:02:27. > :02:30.man with fond memories of the snow here in Schladming who is keen to
:02:31. > :02:35.reassert his dominance. Last season, the American Ted Ligety had a world
:02:36. > :02:38.championship dreams are made of, winning three gold medals. This
:02:39. > :02:43.season, the dream has turned into a bit of a nightmare. Has dared to
:02:44. > :02:45.shred being knocked off his perch? Odds are now lengthening on the
:02:46. > :02:55.American gaining gold in Sochi. The best giant slalom skier of the
:02:56. > :03:04.last few seasons. Ligety is in trouble! I have been extremely
:03:05. > :03:08.unlucky in a couple of races. Repeating what I did in Schladming
:03:09. > :03:16.last year, winning three Goldman 's, will be very difficult to repeat.
:03:17. > :03:21.That is the dream. I have good chances of medals in the super G. It
:03:22. > :03:25.is not ideal for me. It is not like Schladming, where it was a technical
:03:26. > :03:31.skier's hill, but there are technical aspects to it. I have a
:03:32. > :03:35.good chance. On paper, I am one of the best combined skiers out there.
:03:36. > :03:43.And on the giant slalom, one of the favourites. There is a theory with
:03:44. > :03:50.the course setting that coaches are setting courses to deliberately slow
:03:51. > :03:57.you down. Yeah, when a certain nation or a coach sets a course,
:03:58. > :04:01.they set it for or against their own athletes. When that happens, I guess
:04:02. > :04:08.they don't like it when somebody wins races by two seconds. That does
:04:09. > :04:11.not make their guys look good. We train on every single sort of course
:04:12. > :04:16.out there. I am training on a regular basis, so it is not like I
:04:17. > :04:21.have never seen it before. I am used to it. Everybody has their skill
:04:22. > :04:26.sets and their strengths and weaknesses. I am not worried about
:04:27. > :04:30.that. If that line about no one setting courses for him an excuse,
:04:31. > :04:34.or is there truth to it? I think there is truth to it. The distance
:04:35. > :04:39.between the Gates has shortened and the offset is less, meaning he can't
:04:40. > :04:43.benefit from using those big hip movements he used last season. A lot
:04:44. > :04:47.of people are catching up with him. There is more pressure on him with
:04:48. > :04:51.every mistake he makes. When he went down in Valdez, it was the first
:04:52. > :04:57.time he had crashed in about four seasons. But then the crash he had
:04:58. > :05:01.later, those two mistakes are starting to play on his mind. He did
:05:02. > :05:06.not win a medal in Vancouver and is desperate to take one in Sochi. Do
:05:07. > :05:12.you think he can do it? Well, the piste will suit him, because it is a
:05:13. > :05:15.steep flat, and Ligety is ideal at generating speed across the flat
:05:16. > :05:20.sections of the course. The only thing that could trip him up is the
:05:21. > :05:24.snow conditions. If it is soft, someone like Felix Neureuther could
:05:25. > :05:30.sneak in for the win. Who else is that? There are more challengers as
:05:31. > :05:32.the weeks go by. Marcel Hirscher is going brilliantly in giant slalom as
:05:33. > :05:39.well as slalom. Then there is the whole French team. Most of those men
:05:40. > :05:43.are in action tonight. It is now time for the first run of the 2014
:05:44. > :05:49.Schladming night slalom. Matt Chilton has the commentary.
:05:50. > :05:57.Welcome to the classic Austrian night slalom from Schladming. There
:05:58. > :06:07.are in the region of 55,000 crammed in to every vantage point. What a
:06:08. > :06:19.season this young man has had, 19-year-old. He came second last
:06:20. > :06:22.weekend. Shows no fear. Like Marcel Hirscher, doesn't let the pressure
:06:23. > :06:31.get to him. Still looking for his first World Cup win. You can bet on
:06:32. > :06:35.him getting it some this season. As he battles against the crowds on
:06:36. > :06:39.either side of the course, he needs to focus on the snow and the Gates
:06:40. > :06:47.in front of him, rather than the distractions. Nothing wrong with
:06:48. > :07:00.this run. No mistakes so far. Henrik Kristoffersen of Norway. He has set
:07:01. > :07:05.an excellent pace. Marcel Hirscher sit second in the
:07:06. > :07:08.overall standings from Aksel Lund Svindal. A win here would put him
:07:09. > :07:11.only two points behind the Norwegian. He would love to do it on
:07:12. > :07:24.the slope where he was crowned world slalom champion last year. Hirscher
:07:25. > :07:29.on his way. An aggressive start, nice and easy. Beautiful work so
:07:30. > :07:41.far. Looks like he might be quicker than Kristoffersen at the split. The
:07:42. > :07:48.gate forces skiers from right to left across the face of the hill. No
:07:49. > :07:56.mistakes so far. Is he still in front of Kristoffersen? No, he is
:07:57. > :08:02.behind now. That can go. The noise levels are deafening now as the
:08:03. > :08:06.World Cup slalom leader, having won gold here at the World Championships
:08:07. > :08:19.last February, finishes his run with a couple of late terms, but safe and
:08:20. > :08:29.sound. Kristoffersen holds the lead. This is the second best slalom skier
:08:30. > :08:39.of the season. Still without a World Cup win. Let's see if he can produce
:08:40. > :08:58.a bit of magic. That gate is tricky.
:08:59. > :09:11.Myhrer had a skid there, and as a result, he is a quarter of a second
:09:12. > :09:15.behind. I don't think he will be challenging the leaders. He is the
:09:16. > :09:20.slowest of the three starters so far.
:09:21. > :09:24.Mario Matt wants his third win on the Schladming hill, as well as a
:09:25. > :09:28.chance to take any right's title as the most successful Austrian slalom
:09:29. > :09:49.skier. He has already had a win this season. Could this be slalom victory
:09:50. > :09:54.number 15? A very different style to the taller, dynamic Marcel Hirscher.
:09:55. > :10:04.He is old school, but that works just as well at times. Nothing wrong
:10:05. > :10:10.with this from Mario Matt. They are getting right behind him. Second
:10:11. > :10:14.best Austrian this season, the most successful Austrian slalom race of
:10:15. > :10:19.all time in terms of the number of World Cup wins. Rewrote the record
:10:20. > :10:34.books with that win earlier in the season. He is skiing for the lead in
:10:35. > :10:39.Schladming, and he has got the lead. A first run of the highest quality.
:10:40. > :10:42.Felix Neureuther is the most successful slalom skier on the World
:10:43. > :10:46.Cup tour this year, with three wins. First place here tonight would give
:10:47. > :11:03.him back-to-back victories, the first for a German since 1990.
:11:04. > :11:17.The Germanys second in the World Cup standings behind Marcel Hirscher --
:11:18. > :11:24.the Germanys second. He has had two World Cup wins. The Austrian crowd
:11:25. > :11:30.are quite quiet. They don't want to see him succeed here this evening.
:11:31. > :11:34.They would rather enjoy success, of course, for Mario Matt and Marcel
:11:35. > :11:51.Hirscher. Neureuther looks a little clumsy. Leaves himself with a bit of
:11:52. > :12:08.work to do heading into the second run.
:12:09. > :12:17.Hargin is not orthodox, but he is fast. He has been unable to
:12:18. > :12:21.translate those first-run performances into solid World Cup
:12:22. > :12:37.wins. The closest he came was second behind Mario Matt. He has gone from
:12:38. > :13:12.green to red after a noticeable mistake. He hopes to give himself a
:13:13. > :13:16.decent chance. Nice and smooth at the top for Fritz
:13:17. > :13:28.Dopfer. Good acceleration through the turns. Just a little mistake at
:13:29. > :13:35.the end, with that big right-footed turn sending him almost uphill
:13:36. > :13:50.again. How much has it affected his time? Badly, in slalom terms. He has
:13:51. > :13:54.gone to four tenths behind. Fritz Dopfer, hoping to give the Germans
:13:55. > :13:58.two chances, with Felix Neureuther currently in seventh place. Fritz
:13:59. > :14:06.Dopfer has just pushed him down a place. He moves into seventh place.
:14:07. > :14:13.This is the second French racer on the Hill, Alexis Pinturault. A long
:14:14. > :14:22.wait for him to race, especially for a man who has had a World Cup win
:14:23. > :14:40.this season. He is the best of the French racer is by far so far this
:14:41. > :14:44.season. Great top section. He comes from a have French, have Norwegian
:14:45. > :14:48.heritage. Within a quarter of a second off the lead. This could be
:14:49. > :15:02.good for a provisional top five position. A healthy chance of a
:15:03. > :15:08.medal. How close will he be? He gives themselves a real opportunity
:15:09. > :15:18.heading into the second run. Ted Ligety is number 16. The best giant
:15:19. > :15:30.slalom skier in the world. His slalom form is less impressive.
:15:31. > :15:38.Second last weekend. He was the Olympic combined champion in 2006.
:15:39. > :15:48.Ligety holds his head in his hands. He never even got to have way. --
:15:49. > :15:53.halfway. It is all over for Ligety. It is Mario Matt still leading.
:15:54. > :16:03.Henrik Kristoffersen in second, followed by Hagen and Hirscher. --
:16:04. > :16:08.Hargin. What a fantastic first run. The top
:16:09. > :16:13.three separated by a 10th of a second. I am joined by Dave riding
:16:14. > :16:19.from Great Britain. You just missed out on the second run. What is it
:16:20. > :16:27.like racing before that kind of crowd? It is all some. It gets you
:16:28. > :16:31.fired up. If you were sleeping before, if you are not in the
:16:32. > :16:44.starting gate. You want to put on a show. It is really good to race. Who
:16:45. > :16:50.is your money on? I am going Henrik Kristoffersen. He is the new iceman.
:16:51. > :16:53.I would not count Hirscher added. It will be a cauldron of noise for the
:16:54. > :17:10.second round. Here is Matt Chilton. Arnold Schwarzenegger, an Austrian
:17:11. > :17:17.by birth, is here watching. He loves his skiing. Felix Neureuther, the
:17:18. > :17:32.second-best slalom skier of the season. Neither writer has two wins
:17:33. > :17:38.this season. -- Neureuther. What a start. The course has been set by
:17:39. > :17:44.his coat. And clearly it has been said to favour new roster. -- new
:17:45. > :17:54.writer. He is charging through this second
:17:55. > :18:03.leg. No mistakes so far. Near perfection here from Felix Nye
:18:04. > :18:09.writer. So relaxed. Does not seem to feel the pressure at all. First
:18:10. > :18:16.mistake. Momentarily pitched over the front of his skis. No matter. He
:18:17. > :18:24.leads by a massive margin! What a performance. One and a half seconds!
:18:25. > :18:37.That is how to ski the slalom in Schladming. Neureuther needs a
:18:38. > :18:42.tissue but he is the leader. He knows exactly how good that second
:18:43. > :18:47.run was. He just relaxed and let it go. He looked tense on the first
:18:48. > :18:51.run. The second one was an absolute blinder. He has thrown down the
:18:52. > :18:55.gauntlet to everybody laughed. Brilliant skiing. -- to everybody
:18:56. > :19:11.left. A bit of home advantage with this
:19:12. > :19:22.course, having been set by one of the German cultures. -- cultures.
:19:23. > :19:26.Plenty to appreciate here. His compatriot was error-free until
:19:27. > :19:28.about eight gates from home but still managed to charge himself
:19:29. > :19:48.across the line. Felix Neureuther leading the way for
:19:49. > :19:57.Germany. This may be good enough for second. He is home and dry. He is
:19:58. > :20:04.second. Germans first and second at Schladming.
:20:05. > :20:14.This second run was set by the German coach. He said big distances
:20:15. > :20:18.because both of his athletes are tall and they can use those long
:20:19. > :20:24.limbs to put their feet out and around the gates. He has
:20:25. > :20:41.deliberately set to make Hirscher's life as difficult as possible.
:20:42. > :20:45.Tall Swede. On his way. 13 hundredths faster than Felix
:20:46. > :20:57.Neureuther after the first run. If this quick enough? It is. He has
:20:58. > :21:04.gone in front. Then he skis out. Lost his way on the course, made a
:21:05. > :21:09.mistake and had to call it a day. It is hard to see from the replay
:21:10. > :21:15.what happened. He just got wide on that dogleg left hand and was late
:21:16. > :21:20.going into the next turn. The ski rent over the pole. You can see the
:21:21. > :21:26.inside ski popping up slightly. He knew it, he stopped.
:21:27. > :21:29.And as we're getting into the last few days before the Winter Olympics,
:21:30. > :21:37.here's the news. Pinturault from France.
:21:38. > :21:49.Made a mess of his exit from the start hot. He will have to settle
:21:50. > :21:53.and even have been five speed. -- he will have to find speed. The
:21:54. > :22:04.mistakes appear to be stacking up for him. The winner of the super
:22:05. > :22:20.combined on Sunday. He won a slalom ten days ago. 0.37 behind at the
:22:21. > :22:24.intermediate. Pinturault does not look to have settled into the
:22:25. > :22:27.groove. He can only manage third. Barely mistakes and he pays the
:22:28. > :22:34.price. The course setting did not do
:22:35. > :22:38.Pinturault any favours. Because he is shorter than the Germans, he
:22:39. > :22:41.could not get the power on the skis. He works better when the gates are
:22:42. > :22:49.flying at him and he can move his knees quickly. Let's hope the same
:22:50. > :22:58.thing doesn't to Marcel Hirscher. The world number one is on his way.
:22:59. > :23:11.The best slalom skier of the season so far. The leader in the World Cup
:23:12. > :23:14.standings. Nice change of rhythm. Nothing wrong with this. Noise level
:23:15. > :23:30.astonishing now. He is mild in front. Three quarters
:23:31. > :23:38.of a second faster than his German rival. They have got two wins each
:23:39. > :23:45.this season. It looks like Hirscher may get the better of his great
:23:46. > :23:55.rival. A little mistake on the final few turns and he holds on to lead!
:23:56. > :24:00.He holds on to lead by 100th of a second. Incredible scenes here at
:24:01. > :24:07.Schladming. Hirscher just about dozing off.
:24:08. > :24:12.My word! Marcel Hirscher was brilliant at the top. Absolutely
:24:13. > :24:16.nailing it. Throwing his body from side to side, generating huge
:24:17. > :24:23.angles. About ten gates from home he had a real problem. God late in the
:24:24. > :24:25.line. Almost straddled. -- he got late in the line. Well, that was
:24:26. > :24:38.close. Hargin, third after the first run.
:24:39. > :24:44.His advantage over Hirscher is just six hundredths of a second. Good
:24:45. > :24:51.upper body movement. Arms going everywhere. Sometimes the ski poles
:24:52. > :24:57.point sideboards and shoulders get front back over the tale of the ski.
:24:58. > :25:12.-- skywards. His lead has been wiped out. He is a
:25:13. > :25:15.long way back. Too many mistakes. Too much upper body movement.
:25:16. > :25:22.Throwing himself of course. He cannot afford the extra muscle
:25:23. > :25:26.movement from left to right, especially with these massive rhythm
:25:27. > :25:33.changes on the Hill set by the German coach. He has lost his chance
:25:34. > :25:39.again. Hagen is happy to have finished. 19-year-old Henrik
:25:40. > :25:46.Kristoffersen, second fastest after the first run. His advantage over
:25:47. > :25:53.Marcel Hirscher and not very much at all. An early mistake. The sign of
:25:54. > :26:01.real pressure being felt here by a young Henrik Kristoffersen, the
:26:02. > :26:05.runner-up at the weekend. Still looking for his first World Cup win.
:26:06. > :26:14.Will it come macro tonight in the night race? -- will it come macro.
:26:15. > :26:18.He is getting the silent treatment from the Austrian fans. They will be
:26:19. > :26:27.delighted with the way it is going for him.
:26:28. > :26:36.It looks as if Hirscher will hold onto first position with just Mario
:26:37. > :26:44.Matt to come. Kristoffersen has skied well. He takes it away from
:26:45. > :26:51.Hirscher! Al, yes! He has done it! 18 hundredths of a second. He moves
:26:52. > :26:55.into top spot. The mistakes that Marcel Hirscher made through the
:26:56. > :27:00.final few turns have caught up with him.
:27:01. > :27:03.Kristoffersen really has updated slalom skiing, doing techniques that
:27:04. > :27:10.you would not normally teach kids. Swinging his hands, generating speed
:27:11. > :27:16.all the way down. He has done it, he has taken the lead here at
:27:17. > :27:19.Schladming. Only one man left. Mario Matt stands between Henrik
:27:20. > :27:28.Kristoffersen and his first World Cup slalom win. 34 years of age. The
:27:29. > :27:34.winner of the second round. He skis the second run of round seven here
:27:35. > :27:39.in Schladming. And he loses it in the first few turns. And
:27:40. > :27:48.Kristoffersen of Norway takes his first World Cup win! Just 19 years
:27:49. > :27:55.of age. Mario Matt never got going in his second run at all. And
:27:56. > :27:58.Kristoffersen makes the breakthrough.
:27:59. > :28:04.That is how fast it can go in slalom skiing. Out of the start gates and a
:28:05. > :28:07.few gates into the course, a straddle and he is out.
:28:08. > :28:11.Kristoffersen cannot believe it. He is dancing around behind me. What an
:28:12. > :28:17.incredible victory for somebody so young.
:28:18. > :28:20.So Henrik Kristoffersen takes his first ever World Cup win in
:28:21. > :28:30.Schladming, with Marcel Hirscher second.
:28:31. > :28:36.I was in ninth after the first run. I wasn't too far behind the top
:28:37. > :28:44.guys. I tried to push really hard. It worked really good for me.
:28:45. > :28:49.I thought, OK, it will be tough to beat Felix but it wasn't. With this
:28:50. > :28:57.big gap between me and Felix, 100th of a second...! Yes, I am really
:28:58. > :29:02.proud of it. The speed level is pretty OK.
:29:03. > :29:07.At 19 years old can you believe you have won the biggest slalom race in
:29:08. > :29:15.the World Cup? I can believe it, I can believe it. It is a dream come
:29:16. > :29:22.true, for sure. It is amazing. Does this suddenly make you a
:29:23. > :29:25.favourite for Sochi? I don't know. Other people have to say I am a
:29:26. > :29:29.favourite. I think there will be a little bit more pressure now but
:29:30. > :29:32.that is normal. I have to get used to it.
:29:33. > :29:45.You said it was going to be Hirscher. Who said it was
:29:46. > :29:55.Kristoffersen? That would be Dave Riding! Is Kristoffersen the new
:29:56. > :30:00.star? At 19, he has taken Hirscher's technique and routed up
:30:01. > :30:04.another level. It would be really exciting to watch another race in
:30:05. > :30:08.the future. It is shaping up to be an exciting
:30:09. > :30:14.Olympics. Here is the latest news in the world of winter sports.
:30:15. > :30:19.British athletes have been arriving in Sochi ahead of the 22nd Winter
:30:20. > :30:22.Olympic Games. Members of the freestyle ski and snowboard team and
:30:23. > :30:27.the short track speed skaters were among the first to arrive in Russia.
:30:28. > :30:29.Qualifying events get underway on Thursday ahead of the opening
:30:30. > :30:34.ceremony on Friday. One of the most hotly anticipated British arrivals
:30:35. > :30:37.will be Lizzie Yarnold. The 25-year-old goes into the games as a
:30:38. > :30:41.hot favourite for a medal after claiming the overall skeleton World
:30:42. > :30:45.Cup title last weekend . The experience Shelley Rudman is also in
:30:46. > :30:49.with a chance after finishing third overall. Torah Bright is one of the
:30:50. > :30:55.most iconic women in snowboarding. For more than ten years, she has
:30:56. > :30:58.dominated the sport. Gold medallist in the halfpipe in Vancouver, this
:30:59. > :31:02.time around, she's hoping to write her name in the record books in
:31:03. > :31:06.Sochi she is targeting three medals, which may seem like a tall order,
:31:07. > :31:13.but as I found out when I met her, she's used to the odds.
:31:14. > :31:17.-- used to defying the odds. The last two months before the Vancouver
:31:18. > :31:22.games, I spent more time off snow than on. I had two concussions. In
:31:23. > :31:30.hindsight, knowing what we do now about concussion, I should not have
:31:31. > :31:34.been cleared. I probably should not have been at the games. Having left
:31:35. > :31:38.the Winter Olympics in 2006 is appointed, she committed herself to
:31:39. > :31:42.making 2010 her year. She pushed herself to progress and learn new
:31:43. > :31:46.tricks to develop a world beating one. One of those tricks was a
:31:47. > :31:50.switch backside 720, and incredibly difficult trick that very few men
:31:51. > :31:56.can pull off. It was while training for this move that one of those
:31:57. > :31:59.accidents occurred. I was all guns blazing to make this happen. And the
:32:00. > :32:10.concussions brought me down a few levels. With the injury, I took away
:32:11. > :32:15.all the expectations of my own on myself and my country. That is the
:32:16. > :32:18.biggest thing, you don't want to disappoint your country. Everybody
:32:19. > :32:29.wants you to get the gold, and it is really heavy. And she lands the
:32:30. > :32:37.switch backside 720! She knows is good. Looking back with what I now
:32:38. > :32:40.know about concussions, it was science that I should have taken a
:32:41. > :32:46.break and I should have just rested. And I did, after the games.
:32:47. > :32:53.I took time off competing and took a low impact year. Tour began using
:32:54. > :32:58.her way back into the competition in 2011. But in January 2012, her world
:32:59. > :33:01.turned upside down when her friend, four Times X Games gold medallist
:33:02. > :33:11.Sarah Burke, died following a training accident in Utah. I was
:33:12. > :33:14.there on the hill when it happened. And in the hospital for ten days,
:33:15. > :33:24.just wishing and hoping with all her friends and loved ones. It rocked
:33:25. > :33:31.the community to its core. I definitely had some thoughts going
:33:32. > :33:35.through my mind. Do I want my life to be this? I want more out of life.
:33:36. > :33:41.I was planning that year to come back to the contest, but I took a
:33:42. > :33:48.step back and just chilled a little longer. Moving forward from that,
:33:49. > :33:52.you have to decide to get back into competition? I remember hearing that
:33:53. > :33:57.you got back on your board, not realising that you had not been on
:33:58. > :34:02.it. I thought, wow, this is really close to an Olympic cycle and you
:34:03. > :34:06.have not been on a pipe for a while. I did not go in the pipe for a
:34:07. > :34:15.while, but I was always riding on my board. Just not in the contest
:34:16. > :34:21.scene. To be honest, it was so great to have a little break from that.
:34:22. > :34:30.Even though I compete well, I don't love competing. Really? No. I don't
:34:31. > :34:34.need to compete to be fulfilled or to validate that I am a great
:34:35. > :34:39.snowboarder. I always think that to win an Olympic gold medal, you have
:34:40. > :34:45.to have this single-minded desire to win at all costs. And look what it
:34:46. > :34:54.did to me. I did have that, and it was against my whole being. It did
:34:55. > :35:01.not work for me. So taking my experience from the last games into
:35:02. > :35:08.now, I am just doing what I love. And now I have taken on three
:35:09. > :35:11.events. You have just told me that you are not a natural competitor,
:35:12. > :35:15.and now you say you have taken on three snowboard events! Roared
:35:16. > :35:23.across, slopestyle and halfpipe. Yes. Crazy. -- boarder cross,
:35:24. > :35:27.slopestyle and halfpipe. It is the boarder cross that intrigues me,
:35:28. > :35:30.because slopestyle and halfpipe are both born from freestyle and you are
:35:31. > :35:35.doing similar motions in the air. But with the boarder cross, you are
:35:36. > :35:40.suddenly into Alpine territory. It is racing. What made you think, I
:35:41. > :35:44.want that? When you are racing, you are living and everything else is
:35:45. > :35:54.just waiting. You are a woman after my own heart! The journey to just
:35:55. > :36:02.even get into a World Cup was very interesting. Did you have to go back
:36:03. > :36:09.to amateur level? Yeah, I was lining up in the Stargate with 16-year-old
:36:10. > :36:13.kids. -- the start gate. There was a sweet girl and she was like, I can't
:36:14. > :36:20.believe I'm riding in boarder cross with Torah Bright! I'm like, let's
:36:21. > :36:24.race! It was a really quick learning curve for me. On my last one, I
:36:25. > :36:30.qualified in the top 16 into the rounds. People were going, wow. If
:36:31. > :36:37.you are qualifying in the top 16, you are racing. I'm like, yes! I
:36:38. > :36:42.didn't expect it to go that quick. To be honest, boarder cross is just
:36:43. > :36:47.snowboarding. Just like halfpipe and slopestyle. It is a combination of
:36:48. > :36:51.it all, plus free riding. One of five siblings always does devout
:36:52. > :36:57.Mormons, it is perhaps surprising that Torah's parents allowed her to
:36:58. > :37:00.leave home at 14 to join the rock star world of international
:37:01. > :37:05.snowboarding. When I look back, I go, mum, dad, what were you
:37:06. > :37:09.thinking? This was how she explained it. She said, well, I believe I have
:37:10. > :37:13.told you the correct answer pulls and I had faith that you would
:37:14. > :37:20.govern yourself by them. And I totally did. I wanted to be a good
:37:21. > :37:25.daughter and a good person, and I did not move my life off what I was
:37:26. > :37:30.taught. I don't think it is a coincidence that the three women who
:37:31. > :37:38.have dominated halfpipe snowboarding all have faith or spirituality. I
:37:39. > :37:41.have seen a lot of top female athletes who struggle with
:37:42. > :37:46.confidence or insecurity, and you guys seem to have this belief. Do
:37:47. > :37:53.you think there is a connection there are twin faith and confidence?
:37:54. > :38:00.I don't know, really. I guess we can make that connection, but I do feel
:38:01. > :38:05.that when you have a spiritual connection or a faith or something,
:38:06. > :38:12.it does give you a grounding sense and it gives you a purpose as well.
:38:13. > :38:18.For me, being religious my whole life, it is also a foundation. I
:38:19. > :38:22.have read in various places that you are calling it after these games, at
:38:23. > :38:27.least on competition. If you take three gold medals, or just three
:38:28. > :38:31.medals, will you turn your back on it 's if you are having that much
:38:32. > :38:36.fun and you are so successful, can you turn your back on it? I would
:38:37. > :38:41.like to kind of slow down or be done with competition. But, that being
:38:42. > :38:51.said, yeah, if I am still feeling it, I will keep going. But then I
:38:52. > :38:55.definitely would not be on a full contest schedule, I will pick and
:38:56. > :39:06.choose. I am just taking each year as it comes. I am just going to
:39:07. > :39:10.shred. Surely while everyone else is specialising in events, going for 43
:39:11. > :39:14.will be a dilutions of her talents, especially where she has no history
:39:15. > :39:17.in boarder cross. I don't think so. In halfpipe, you need immaculate
:39:18. > :39:21.board control. That is the foundation of her skill set and it
:39:22. > :39:25.translates well from the other disciplines. Jim drastically,
:39:26. > :39:28.slopestyle has progressed a lot in the last few years for the women, so
:39:29. > :39:32.she might struggle to keep up there. But with the boarder cross, her
:39:33. > :39:37.skill set works. You write her off at your peril. As we heard earlier,
:39:38. > :39:41.Team GB had a world champion going into Sochi. Lizzie Yarnold will be
:39:42. > :39:46.the woman to beat in skeleton. Silver and gold from the last two
:39:47. > :39:51.Olympics, our Great Britain sliding team will be one of the strongest in
:39:52. > :39:56.Sochi. Here are some to look out for.
:39:57. > :40:04.Shelley Rudman. John Jackson. Lizzie Yarnold. British bobsleigh. British
:40:05. > :40:08.skeleton. It is exhilarating, fast, adrenaline, nerves, excitement. You
:40:09. > :40:13.have to be a certain personality type to begin with. You have to have
:40:14. > :40:17.almost no steel. It is the adrenaline that I love. When I go
:40:18. > :40:21.down and I have this led in my hand, I just think about being explosive
:40:22. > :40:25.and going as far as I can with the sled. Once you go past curve one,
:40:26. > :40:28.you are on a roll and you just feel the track and you start to
:40:29. > :40:34.instinctively steer it and your fears go away. Your peripheral
:40:35. > :40:37.vision and everything takes over. You are feeling the interaction
:40:38. > :40:42.between you and the eyes, and it is all your senses working at 1 million
:40:43. > :40:48.miles an hour. When it goes right, bobsleigh is a sport you love. When
:40:49. > :40:54.you are upside down with six kilos on top of you, it is not nice. For
:40:55. > :40:59.any athlete, it is our dream, and it has been since I was ten years old.
:41:00. > :41:04.This is what I have been training for everyday of my life it would
:41:05. > :41:10.mean everything. I am just so proud to realise the dream I had as a
:41:11. > :41:15.child to go to an Olympics. How much of an advantage is it going
:41:16. > :41:20.into the games as favourite? Well, winter sports are unpredictable, but
:41:21. > :41:24.as Svindal told me, I would rather be world champion and favourite than
:41:25. > :41:29.not. Not sure if it holds true for some of the younger events. If you
:41:30. > :41:34.look back at the X Games last weekend, both the men's and women's
:41:35. > :41:39.favourites lost out to younger riders. That was the last event in
:41:40. > :41:43.their preparation for Sochi, and their confidence could be in
:41:44. > :41:47.tatters. Well, it is not long to wait now. If you are into winter
:41:48. > :42:18.sports, all your prayers are about to be answered.
:42:19. > :42:23.And the 22nd Winter Olympic Games from Sochi, Russia, starts on
:42:24. > :42:26.Friday. We will bring you live coverage of the opening ceremony
:42:27. > :42:32.from 3:30pm, as the Olympic torch is lit to symbolise more than two weeks
:42:33. > :42:37.of top winter sport action. And we will both be there to ensure you do
:42:38. > :42:42.not miss a second. We will have 200 hours of television coverage of the
:42:43. > :42:49.games, plus 650 hours of live action via six HD streams, on whatever
:42:50. > :42:53.device you choose. And as an aperitif to that, if you missed it
:42:54. > :42:55.earlier in the week, Dan Snow presents A History Of The Winter
:42:56. > :43:01.Olympics. That is on right after us in a couple of minutes. Now, this is
:43:02. > :43:05.the last Ski Sunday of the season. We have wrought you racing from
:43:06. > :43:09.France, Italy, Switzerland and Austria. And we brought you stories
:43:10. > :43:12.of winter sports pioneers from New Zealand, Australia and the United
:43:13. > :43:16.States. And on the eve of the biggest winter sports event in the
:43:17. > :43:21.world, it is time to say Auf Wiedersehen from Schladming.
:43:22. > :43:48.And welcome to Sochi. Looked at them barred in each
:43:49. > :43:56.other! They have made contact. Joy for the Swiss supporters. It is
:43:57. > :44:06.hard, this skiing stuff, isn't it? He has got it! Nothing quite like
:44:07. > :44:24.it. Do you have views on
:44:25. > :44:27.the BBC's television services? If so, the BBC Trust
:44:28. > :44:32.would like to hear from you.