Comeback with the Olympic standard: battered racing driver Dreßen makes an enthusiastic return

Thomas Dreßen has to watch for a long, long time as the best skiers in the world win each other.

Comeback with the Olympic standard: battered racing driver Dreßen makes an enthusiastic return

Thomas Dreßen has to watch for a long, long time as the best skiers in the world win each other. The best German ski racer falls out forever because of operations. Now he's coming back - and he's right there with the front runners. An audible small, personal triumph.

Eighth place felt like a victory for ski racer Thomas Dreßen. Full of relief, the Upper Bavarian threw his arms in the air after crossing the finish line and yelled an unmistakable "YEAAA!" to the Rocky Mountains. Germany's best downhill skier is back - and how. "It's really cool that I'm back. It felt like coming home," said the 29-year-old after his first World Cup race since March 2020.

Victory in Lake Louise, Canada, went to Norwegian powerhouse Aleksander Aamodt Kilde. The winner of the small crystal ball was 0.06 seconds ahead of Daniel Hemetsberger of Austria. The Swiss high-flyer Marco Odermatt (0.10) took third place.

With starting number four, Dreßen threw himself out of the starting gate. "I felt nervous at the start," reported the athlete from Garmisch-Partenkirchen. In the steep middle section, the German still lacked courage in some passages. On the other hand, Dreßen immediately showed his old class in the gliding passages, which has led him to a total of five World Cup victories so far.

Dreßen can certainly plan for the World Championships in France in February after his splendid run. "I thought I had to deliver," said the athlete from SC Mittenwald after his long injury break. First Dreßen had slowed down a hip operation. Then an operation on the injured right knee caused the German to miss the entire past season, including the Olympic Games. On Saturday, the Bavarian could finally shine again.

Vice World Champion Romed Baumann in tenth and Dominik Schwaiger in twelfth rounded off the good speed start from the point of view of the German Ski Association. Simon Jocher (17th), Josef Ferstl (22nd), Andreas Sander (31st) and Luis Vogt missed out on a place in the top 15 and thus missed half the World Cup norm. The route became slower and slower with increasing cloudiness.

It was the first descent of the season for the fastest Alpine athletes after the Matterhorn races planned for the end of October had to be canceled due to a lack of snow. A Super-G is scheduled for the men's team in Lake Louise on Sunday. And Dreßen is suddenly one of the contenders for the top places.