here's a charismatic, hard-charging Italian skier on the World Cup circuit who loves being the life of the party and sparkles when the spotlight shines in his direction. And, no, former great Alberto Tomba hasn't made a return to the slopes at nearly 45 year old. Christof Innerhofer is drawing more and more comparisons to his boyhood hero, the skier he vowed to emulate when he grew up. Only, Tomba is Tomba, and in a league of his own.
Sure, Innerhofer appreciates everyone pointing out that he's a lot like the flamboyant superstar, but Innerhofer readily acknowledges he still has a long way to go to live up to the reputation of Tomba.
On the slopes, at least. Off the hill, Innerhofer's doing just fine. Last summer, fresh off earning three medals at the world championships, Innerhofer appeared everywhere. He was featured in the Italian editions of magazines such as Men's Health and Vanity Fair, along with attending one social function after another. He was constantly seen and heard - very Tomba-esque. "Tomba was the biggest ski racer from Italy. But after the race, he enjoyed other things," Innerhofer said with a sly grin.
And that's become Innerhofer's credo, too. Ski hard, train hard, but don't forget to party hard.
"It's true. I sometimes go out and have fun with my friends," said Innerhofer, who finished 19th in a downhill training run Thursday on the challenging Birds of Prey course. "I'm young. I live for ski racing, but outside of ski racing it's another life. I'm single. I can do what I want."That said, he doesn't let his time in the limelight interfere with his skiing. Even with his busy social calendar in the offseason, Innerhofer still arrived at team camp in perhaps the best shape of his career. He breezed through the squad's fitness exam, pedaling the stationary bike at 500 watts, which was about 20 percent more than anyone else.
"That means I trained really hard," said Innerhofer, a two-time World Cup winner. With that kind of offseason, Innerhofer was primed for a big year. And then he had a setback. One that, in retrospect, could have been a lot worse. While training in Austria, last month, Innerhofer crashed and injured his head, along with bruising and slightly twisting his left knee. The wipeout sidelined him for 10 days. He competed in the super-G and downhill races last weekend in Lake Louise, Alberta, but was a little apprehensive about letting loose. He was 23rd in the downhill and didn't finish the super-G. "I know I'm not perfect now with my head," Innerhofer said. "I must push, have more confidence and know I can go with the best. I will try to push more."
He turned in a sensational downhill training run Wednesday, finishing second overall. On Thursday, he was having a solid run but made some mistakes in the bottom section of the course, costing him time. He also had a brief stretch where he lost focus - a dangerous thing to do going nearly 60 mph. That's partly because his head still bothers him from the crash. "My problem is with concentration," said Innerhofer, who turns 27 on Dec. 17. "When I come down into the finish after two minutes so intensive, yeah, it's hard because it (hurts) a little bit. "But I skied some gates really good (Thursday), tried to push really hard. And, yeah, when I do a perfect run, I can be for sure in the top 10."Known as a skier with a ton of potential, Innerhofer broke through last February at the worlds in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. He won gold in the super-G, bronze in the downhill and silver in the super-combined.
Like that, his life changed. Not so much that he was an instant celebrity, but rather because it relieved some pressure. "Now, I'm much more relaxed," said Innerhofer, who followed his dynamic performance at worlds with a World Cup win in the super-combined two weeks later. "I can enjoy more. I have no more pressure. I'm much more happy."Along with his success came more comparisons to Tomba. Yet Innerhofer is quick to point out that Tomba stands alone, especially given his resume - 50 World Cup wins, five Olympic medals and the toast of too many parties to count. "For me, it's not pressure" to be the next Tomba, Innerhofer said. "I don't think that I must confirm those things. The three medals at worlds, nobody can take them. I have good sponsors, good skis, super servicemen, super staff - I have a lot."In other words, it's good to be Innerhofer these days?