12/01/2014 Ski Sunday

Once upon a time in Switzerland, there was a little town called

Adelboden. The 362 days of the year, it is your typical mountain

resort, small, scenic. Switzerland at its neutral best. But for one

weekend in January, the World Cup wagon rolls into town. Every hotel

and bar in town is packed to the rafters and it all starts here. On

Friday night, they hold a party to welcome the racers. Music, drinking

and dancing, zip wires. It transforms this place into a hotbed

of excitement and pressure. Then it is the big show. The racers battle

be mountain, conditions and the clock. It takes true grit to make it

down the final pitch here. If you win, it makes you a legend. You will

see some of the good, the bad and the ugly. Over the course of the

show, some of the finest racing you will ever see. First up is the fifth

giant slalom of the season. So far, it is to piste Marcel Hirscher and

Ted Ligety. Who will win the next round of this stupendous battle of

technical giants? And if you thought Adelboden was off the beaten track,

let me introduce you to the man who built his own private ski resort.

From serenity to insanity, we catch up with Emily Sarsfield, the leading

British contender going into the Winter Olympics in Sochi. This might

be a one horse town in the Swiss wild West, but there is a new

gunslinger in Adelboden. Marcel Hirscher last season retain his

World Cup title. He joined the likes of Stephan Ebeharter and Hemann

Maier as multiple Austrian winners. He is on the form of his life. We

went to catch up with arguably the best skier on the planet right now.

In German, it means stag, his surname. For Austrian ski fans, it

means success. The reigning overall World Cup champion has been used to

people chanting his name. I had the pressure all the time on my

shoulders. Already with five to six years old. I grew up, the cloud is

getting bigger -- the crowd. I get older and older. I have a lot of

experience. For me it is pretty normal to have a lot of pressure on

my shoulders. If I have a goal I want to reach the goal. I stay

pretty focused all of the time. Maybe I am more a racehorse than a

training course. Of the piste, I am pretty quiet. Would you say the are

-- you are the most famous sportsman in Austria right now? I don't know.

Do you know? I am not Austrian but it has got to be between you and

some of the ski jumpers. The athletes right now who are

competing, I am definitely from one to three. It is hard and Austria to

get the most famous athlete because we have many famous retired skiers.

We will see how many victories I can collect in the next years. The

records in Austria are pretty high. This course in Adelboden is quite

challenging, isn't it? It is definitely a very special place to

be. It is really brilliant. You ski over the pitch in the steep part.

All of the people are chairing. -- cheering. What makes him so good?

I first watched Marcel Hirscher ski when he was 14 and he was creating

incredible angles with his lower legs. World Cup ski racers were not

doing it at that time. Now he has taken the geometry and he has got

the power to deal with it as he has grown. If he has that talented, why

isn't he beating Ted Ligety? Ted Ligety tends to use his hip much

more. When the courses are longer set, big sisters is between the

gates, Ted Ligety will beat him. Who else is coming through? The

gates, Ted Ligety will beat him. Who will pack the top ten led by Alexis

Pinturault. A couple of Germans did so well in Val d'Isere. Last but

maybe least, what about the Swiss? Unless we see a miracle, I cannot

maybe least, what about the Swiss? see them being on the podium on home

snow. The sun is blazing down and it is

warming up this course. The fans are out in force and the atmosphere is

heating up. This is the Adelboden giant slalom. Matt Chilton has the

commentary. It is a beautiful springlike day. A

relaxed at the Ted Ligety. Marcel Hirscher flexes his muscles at the

top of the course. Thomas Fanara first to go in Adelboden. On a day

like today when the snow is so soft, that could be a serious advantage

because this track despite the work they have done on it, injecting the

water with the help of the Swiss military, and applying the various

chemicals, it will cut up quite quickly. Thomas Fanara is in full

attack mode here. Comes onto the flat, bright sunshine. What a

beautiful morning it is. Thomas without any mistakes so far. Second

in Val d'Isere. A really good start to the season. The French team have

so much talent within the giant slalom set up. A lot of competition

for Olympic places for the French team when it comes to selection.

That is midway through January. Thomas Fanara with a clean course,

making the most of it. The toughest part of the track is still to come.

This legendary final pitch, it sends them down the steep mountainside

towards the finish. This cauldron of an atmosphere. Thousands of mainly

Swiss fans waving their flags. There are a few French here too and they

will be happy with what they have seen from Thomas Fanara. It looked a

bit scrappy, particularly coming down the finished pitch. You could

see his outside ski being pulled away. But there are deep cuts

already because it is very warm here in Adelboden. As it warms up, the

course will chop up. I think by that reckoning, number one would have

been the best number to start. Could it be Ted Ligety's crown is

slipping? The one to mince an American has hit

a sticky. Crashing out for the first time in Val d'Isere -- the once

invincible American. He will look for inspiration from memories of

last season's win here. Ted Ligety ready to go.

Two giant slalom races this season. Ted Ligety has had two, Marcel

Hirscher has two. They have shared the honours so far. It has not been

his best season. Ted Ligety have had a couple of failures to finish. One

or two crashes as well. Chasing the time of Thomas Fanara, 19.43. Thomas

validity getting outside of the ideal racing line. Lost his way

slightly there -- Thomas validity getting outside. The red line across

the course shows you the intermediaries point. He is

trailing. Lots of noise. They like to watch Ted Ligety race. All of

these Swiss supporters are big fans of Ted Ligety and of course Bode

Miller. They have not got too many of their own racers today. They will

look to support other nations. Ted Ligety heading in the wrong

direction behind Thomas Fanara. Onto the final pitch. Got his body almost

horizontal on the snow. He will be happy to be starting early. The snow

is ridiculously soft underfoot. Ted Ligety has done OK. Second position.

But Ron did not look like that macro that run did not look like he was

getting the same pressure -- that run did not look like he was getting

the same pressure. He was forcing it to much. He has not got the timing,

not the same smooth skiing as last season.

Marcel Hirscher in the start gate. He wears the red bib. He loves it

here. He has won here in -- a number of times. He is hoping to beat the

record of five World Cup wins in Adelboden. Marcel Hirscher starting

with bib number four and already the courses cutting up quite

dramatically. Big ruts forming. It will be really tough for the later

starters. Marcel Hirscher the first man to do the giant slalom double

here in Adelboden a couple of years ago. He really does like this

course. Benjamin Raich, another one who had multiple wins in Adelboden.

He is also in the start list today. Marcel Hirscher finds himself 0.75

off the pace. The big steep face to finish his first run. Lots of

Austrian supporters here. Their support is being drowned out by the

thousands of Swiss. Marcel Hirscher has had a good run but not enough to

beat Thomas Fanara. That run is starting to look very

good, the run from Thomas Fanara. Marcel Hirscher attacking too much a

couple of times. Had to have a couple of heavy sets to get back on

track. Close to Ted Ligety. Thomas Fanara's time is looking good.

Benefiting from going number one. Alexis Pinturault's parents only

hotel and he grew up with the snow on his doorstep. The French have a

strong team but he need not worry about switching nationalities to get

a start spot. He is the leader of the French pack.

He might just have had enough time to talk or at least listen to it

Thomas Fanara via the two-way radios. Thomas Fanara has been at

the bottom of the course for a little while now. I wonder how much

information the leader will give to one of the later starters. They may

beat compatriots but team-mates can be used loosely in such a situation

because it is an individual sport. Nothing wrong with these first few

turns. He had quite a heavy landing. He did not seem to lose too much

speed. The hard work is coming his way shortly.

He is keeping in touch with Fanara. The approaches the finish. It bares

its teeth here. He might leave himself a lot to do going into the

second run. He takes second position. Friends first and second.

It is looking good for the French fans, I was talking to Thomas

Fanara, he said his fan club left France at 4am. There is a big group

of them based up there, by the big screen. France are in first and

second, they will be happy for the second run.

For the Germans, results were mixed. Sixth place and 10th place. Five

Italians made the top 30. The best place was in fifth place. The top

Swiss racer was in 26th position. Miller had a bad day. A narrow

collision here, --. Is it the way the French have set up

their skis? It is where they have been to train, they have found

somewhere that replicates this soft snow that we have here. Are they too

far ahead for Ted Ligety to reel in? The big names have got a chance

to catch the man in second place, but two, he is an awful way ahead.

But he has never been at the top of a World Cup podium, he will never

have a better chance. The pressure will be huge. The ship of glory will

be about to sail, will Thomas Fanara be on it?

An impressive season to date for the Norwegian, improving results. He was

14th in the first run, he has a decent lead here. This bottom part

of the course on a fresh pattern of gates that has been set for the

second run. It is quite inviting. It allows the racers to move into full

attack mode. Plenty of speed. He is ahead of the Italian. He tries to

accelerate the skis through these terms. This is nice work. He has had

the green light on all the way, and he takes first race in Adelboden. An

excellent run. A great run, really exciting to

watch, great angles, he does ski a very clean line. He picked up a lot

of time in the middle part of the course over those rollers. Sucking

them up with his legs and keeping the ski in contact with the snow,

accelerating out of each turn. The German was seventh after the

first run. Laying down some fast terms in the early stages. His

advantage over the Norwegian is substantial. He is getting quicker.

No German has ever won here. The last German to win a World Cup giant

slalom was back in 1973. This skier has never won a World Cup giant

slalom. He has been one of the best slalom skiers of the last three or

four years, but his form here has really started to move on a notch

this season. This looks really promising. Really fast, aggressive,

easy, relaxed terms. He has flown through the top part of the course.

Now, he hits the state it. He recovered his racing line. He picks

it up again. He is light on his edges. He takes it away. A massive

margin. Brilliant. Beautiful skiing, really smooth and

relaxed. That is the best I have ever seen him in giant slalom. He

dealt -- he beat Marcel Hirscher in slalom a week ago, and he has thrown

down the gauntlet. The Italian was fifth after the

first run. The lead is not a lot. Deteriorating conditions, it is dark

appear now. The sunshine will aid visibility. He is trying to feel his

way over the lumps and bumps. You can see how warm it has been, with

the green fields on the opposite side of the valley. He is now

behind, not a good top section. He finds himself on the flats, this is

where he should be sharper. But again, he looks slightly

conservative. He takes the role nicely. He absorbs

it, and dissipates it, and sets up for the big finish in Adelboden. But

I think his chance has slipped away. He just had to lean his body through

and make sure of the turn. The damage was already done. The German

maintains his lead. The Italian his third, quite a gap between first and

third. Marcel Hirscher, in fourth place after the first run. The World

Cup leader in giant slalom this season. He is off on a charge. Not

the cleanest top section I have ever seen from him, but he is starting to

go to work now, getting his polls wrapped around his body for a split

second. He is attempting to get more aerodynamic, to pick up a fraction

more speed. Most of his advantage has been wiped out. He comes into

the sunny side of the course. Still clinging on. Emergency terms. There

is no one better at recovering a racing line following a mistake. He

can make huge mistakes and still go on and win races. But I think it

might have been an error to far today for him. He is slower than the

German. For the first time in the second run. The impossibly steep run

into the line. He is hanging on for every turn. Trying to generate an

extra bit of speed. It is not enough. He is in second place, the

German holds onto first base. A fantastic display of aggressive

skiing, but it was almost too aggressive. The German was smooth

and relaxed, like a cat, but Marcel Hirscher was like a bowl in a china

shop, lots of tiny mistakes. Even skiing the finish cleanly, it was

not enough. Ted Ligety, the world giant slalom

champion. On his way for the second time of asking today in Adelboden.

In third place after the first run. The best giant slalom skier of the

last four or five seasons. He gets beautiful angles, he is always a joy

to watch, and he is attacking the second run. His lead is still

intact. He is in trouble, he has lost a ski! His race is done. It

looks like he is OK. He hugged a tip inside the control gate.

He can count himself lucky he walked away from that without any injury.

Hooking a giant slalom gate can be quite dangerous. He is lucky the

binding just popped off, but his season is taking a downward spiral.

The Frenchman with a big lead over the German. He was still pushing

with his polls as he reached the third gate. A sign that he is really

up for the second run. He is doing really well, but he still has a lot

to learn. He admits he is not the finished article just yet. There are

one or two points of this course that he has to get right. The role

has been handled well by some. Less well by others. Ted Ligety did not

get that far. Up and over. He has lost his lead. A little late there.

Down into the darkness. The sunny finish belies the ferocious mess of

this run into the line. It is terrifyingly speak. The deficit has

grown. He is in trouble. He leaned into the gate to make it count, but

his skiing has deteriorated, he has lost his composure, he is late on

every turn, and no danger to the German, who holds on.

He did not look incredibly balanced as he went at the start. The first

section is where the German was incredibly fast. The other mistake

that he made, coming onto the finished pitch, the big

right-hander, he had to set the tone twice, because he did not get the

direction quite right. This will put the pressure on his team-mate, temp

Acra, now, the last one due to ski. Thomas Fanara, skiing for his first

ever World Cup win. The last man on the mountain in Adelboden. The

likeable Frenchman. His lead over the German is significant. Almost

1.5 seconds. Can he hold his composure, hold his nerve and make

it count? A positive start, but a lack of balance. He was shaky. The

lead has reduced. It might be even less by the time he stopped the

clock again. He still has enough in reserve to steal the lead away. But

he cannot afford any mistakes. It was on the bottom third that the

German was at his brilliant best. This is at times a little scruffy by

Thomas Fanara. He is clinging on. It has to be fast here. He looks a

little tense and tight. The terms are late, I do not think it will

happen for him. I think it will be the German's victory. It is. The

German wins his first World Cup giant slalom, he becomes the first

German man ever to win here. When he set off, I thought he was

going to do it, he looked so relaxed on the top part of the course,

soaking up the bumps, and the first mistake came over the little

rollers. He got pushed later, wide in the line. He still had a chance,

but as he went on to the finished pitch, the second of the

right-handers, his shoulders twisted out, the skis skidded, and we knew

he was not going to beat the German. The German becomes the first German

winner of a World Cup giant slalom since the early 70s. Second place

again for Thomas Fanara. Marcel Hirscher on the podium.

First giant slalom victory for Germany in 40 years. It is crazy.

Unbelievable. Today is a historic day. Maybe I relied it a bit later,

but until right now, my feeling is really good. -- maybe I realised.

How did Felix Neureuther make up so much ground? He loves it when it is

bumpy. Why did Ted Ligety not do so well? Ted Ligety likes it when it is

hard so he can get the hip in and generate the big angles. You called

it and said Thomas Fanara would crack under pressure. When he

started, I thought he would do it. He was relaxed but then made a

couple of mistakes. He ran out and the lead went away. Disappointment

for Thomas Fanara. That was the news from Adelboden. This is what is

going on in the rest of the world of sport. Lindsey Vonn return to action

after ten months out, but after failing to finish at Val d'Isere,

she announced she would not be competing in Russia. Trouble too for

Tommy Morgenstern, the three-time Olympic gold medallist suffered

severe injuries after a training crash. He will remain in intensive

care that 72 hours. Sochi preparations are much smoother fur

Lizzie Yarnold. Along with Shelley Rudman, she was in action on Friday

at the latest World Cup event in St Moritz. If you want to know how they

get on, press the red button in about half an hour from now.

Here on Ski Sunday, we pride ourselves on bringing you some

unusual stories. Mike Basich in the pursuit of his dream, moved hundreds

of tonnes of rock by hand. That is pathetic. Mike's efforts are

anything but. And there it is. Look at the track.

How are you going? Good. We will head up the road here and see what's

know we have got to deal with. We might need the snowmobile. OK. A

little bit of a journey. I am excited.

This is it. Pretty wicked view. I am pretty speechless. I expect going --

I was expecting it to be good, but this is as close to Alpine paradise

as you can get. Where would the snow pack be in winter? On an average

winter, about this high, 15 feet, 20 foot, five metres, six metres. Two

years ago, the whole house was buried. Completely buried. It was a

really bizarre experience. I came back from eight trip and I walked up

the hill and the house was gone. It was amazing. You never know what

will happen up here. You have got to be ready for whatever. Snowboarding

is his passion and after turning his back on competitive riding, he

headed with the back country with a sled and eight truck. He bought 40

acres of land and built this cabin. I started snowboarding when I was

13. You went to the resort and you would not see a snowboarder. If he

did, you would go and talk to them and see what kind of bored they were

wrong. Keyboards we started on wormwood, it was exciting. -- they

wormwood. I did not fit in with the football all basket team. This was

perfect. It stuck out. Would you class yourself as the stereotypical

snowboard rat? I was the youngest in that group. It was a pretty fun

group. We were, you could say, loud. Not welcome most places. Over

time, it became, this is not going to go away. Certified to go on this

list. The biggest problem is the visual, how everyone looked.

Everyone was so used to be certain tradition that skiing has always

had. There was not a lot of room for something different. Shaved heads,

died her. -- dyed hair. Wow. Warm in here. It must have been

incredible watching that much power. It is pretty fun. I cannot

get my head around it. The dream scenario. I have learnt a lot about

what I need to live. I have lived in a big house, I have lived in my car

for a couple of years. I spend most of my time outside in the daytime.

This is what I think I need. It is one of the best picture frames you

could ever built. For me, it is. It is what I dream dog as a kid. At the

same time, what this place has given me, I am trying to work with that --

it is what I dreamt of as a kid. I started competing when I was 15 and

I quit competing around 2000. On the international circuit, how many

competitions did you do? More than my body can handle. Some of the

biggest years, I went to Europe 15 times, Japan, four, five times. All

in 12 months. Nonstop. Was it a case of burn-out at the end

of it? Getting away from competition came from realising the sport was

getting more and more structure and realising why I got into this and

kept it in my life, what it was for, the creativity of it. I really

think that in a weird way I snowboard, not exactly for the

sport, but I snowboard for what it brings around it. The environment?

Yeah, the ability to get creative and do something that has not been

done before. Competition took a lot of that away from me. As it got

bigger and bigger. Mike was at the forefront of self shooting

technology and heap pioneered ways to shoot without a crew, in the

process pushing the boundaries of what could be done with a camera. No

photographer would let me jump with a $4000 camera. The money part of

life, for me, is there a -- if there is going to do, the money part will

figure itself out. I spent thousands of dollars on the setup. I spent

money to fire the camera and figure out how to make things work. I did a

lot of welding to mount the tripod and the camera. It was a space that

no one was willing to jump road gaps with a camera... I have destroyed

cameras. It took a few years for people to realise that it was a

legitimate thing. It was not a gimmick. Yeah. Some of my photos

were little odd. The helicopter drop thing I did was not exactly welcome

as snowboarding, it was viewed as a publicity stunt. A lot of that

changed my way of speaking about it. All the work I started doing was

very personal. I feel what I'm doing now is the first day -- is what I

did the first day I started snowboarding. It has not been easy.

It has been huge struggle. Not having sponsors. I was fine with

that because I was willing to let it go. Ice -- I suppose it was about

being true to you. I try to stay on my true path. Not being influenced

by what the world thinks I'm supposed to do. This is my version

of a lift. I thought the house was good! What did you buy customer did

you buy these frames? -- what did you buy? Anything red is

custom-made. The gearbox and the wheels, the towers, that came with

it and the chair I am holding. Some things I have built. Even the

gripping of the cable is something I built because I am using a different

type of cable. That was some of the stuff I got her engineer myself. It

is a one seat. There it is. Off we go. The first time I rode it was so

tense. Amazing. Riding a chairlift in my

backyard. But no resort is complete without

this. This is the crowning touch, isn't

it? This is my favourite toy. Once I got this, my whole life changed.

Never touched a shovel since. You obviously need a certain amount of

snow to use it. It must have changed the way you view the hill.

Everything else was with a snowmobile. I can build a welder

Rupp with this. If I have something to fix. I can cut a road with this.

It is one of the most spectacular playgrounds I have ever seen.

Thanks. Thank you for having us. One of the most inspiring and

determined people I have ever met. Now it is time to take a look at our

free style skiers. Also looking to impress is a 30-year-old from Durham

who likes to live life in the fast lane.

Emily Sarsfield, British ski cross. Ski cross is the ultimate downhill

race. You have got the Alpine aspect cos you have got the downhill

racing. Then you have the freestyle aspect because of the jumps. You are

racing head-to-head so everyone can see who will win the race. They

start at the top together and the first one to cross the finish

line... It is so exciting. It is a scary event. I am not going to live.

I stand at the top of the course and I am scared to go down. Jumping 30

metres, 40 metres. Added into the mix, you have got someone trying to

knock you out of the way! The Sochi course, when we did the test event

last year, it was a great course. I loved it. It has got some huge

jumps. The big thing is that you know you have got to be calm to keep

yourself in the safest position. If you go down hard, you really do help

yourself -- hurt yourself. Getting to Sochi is the ultimate thing. That

means so much to me. Best of luck to Emily and the rest of Team GB as

they make their final preparations for the Winter Games. The first

programme from Sochi comes to you on the 7th of February. The BBC will

have over 200 hours of coverage across the games on all of your

devices. I am the dreadful menace, the one whose will is done, the

haunting chill upon your neck, I am the conundrum. But now you stand

before me, to void of all this may. -- to avoid. Could it be just maybe

I will let you have your day? As you can see -- you can see the full

trailer before Sherlock on BBC One tonight. I am officially excited.

Peaking just in time for the Olympics is Felix Neureuther.

Congratulations to him for his first ever win in Adelboden today. Plenty

more action on Ski Sunday extra. You can watch the full coverage of

the women's downhill on the iPlayer. It is a cracker. And you can watch

the men's slalom on midday on all platforms. Then the main course, Ski

Sunday next week from Wengen. The Lauberhorn is the most physically

demanding there is. Are they going to stand up to another two and a

half minutes of punishment? It would be more like three minutes for me

with a camera and I do not really know.

Tune in next week to find out. Really rough and bumpy. Can't really

see anything at all. It is just like a vertical skating rink. My legs are

really starting to burn. Hard on the left ski. And across the line! That

is quite a rush.