(Mont-Tremblant) When Paula Moltzan arrives at a competition site, she rarely arrives alone.
The 29-year-old skier had already passed through Canadian customs when she responded to La Presse’s call on Thursday morning. It was even 45 minutes from Mont Tremblant.
The American used her personal car from her residence in Massachusetts to travel to the fourth stop of the season. Her husband, who is also her technician, was on board.
However, Mr. and Mrs. Moltzan will not be the only ones to take on the Laurentian mountain during the weekend.
The whole family will be there, as is the case most of the time. Last week in Killington, the clan members were numerous, visible and noisy. In the front row at the edge of the track, they sported hockey vests with Moltzan’s name embroidered on the back, wore cowboy hats, rang their cow bells and held up signs with their favorite’s face. It has become commonplace and Moltzan is delighted about it.
“My husband’s dad made all of these sweaters and I think we’ll see quite a few this weekend,” she assured.
Her family’s encouragement paid off last week in Vermont, where she finished eighth in Saturday’s giant slalom and eighth in Sunday’s slalom. And this, with bibs that are not very advantageous. However, the Minnesota native was able to do well, buoyed by the energy of a won over crowd.
“I think I took a better direction at Killington. I skied well in Solden, but in Levi it is always a little more difficult. So I always arrive a little more stressed during local races. Especially when you’re not skiing at your best. But I think having two good races at home allowed me to establish a good foundation. »
In the first race of the season, in Austria, she finished 11th, and in Finland she recorded a 15th place finish and a first-run crash.
Last year she finished 12th overall; 15th in slalom and 8th in giant slalom.
And it’s not for lack of will. Moltzan believes he is still making full progress, on the eve of his thirties, and his results prove it.
However, the level on the World Cup circuit is extremely high. Especially since some skiers are on the podium and some promising young athletes sporadically manage to make breakthroughs.
“It’s a very difficult sport in which everyone is very talented,” she says. Sometimes when you think you have what it takes to make a top 5 and you don’t make the top 30, it can be very frustrating, because there’s no one to hold accountable but you. And then you have to assimilate it, think about it, study it. We have to get up and it’s not easy. »
Fortunately for the Olympian, she obtained confirmation last year that she had the necessary tools to finally aspire to great honors.
At the Semmering slalom in December, Moltzan climbed to the second step of the podium in complete delirium. She was first and waiting to see the final run of her teammate and friend Mikaela Shiffrin. The most prolific skier in history won, but seeing her friend finally climb onto the podium, she threw her poles and jumped into Moltzan’s arms in tears, projecting all the light on her.
At the time, it was only his third career top-5 finish. She has made three more since then.
And Moltzan looks back on this day of December 29, 2022 with enormous humility. “I think it was just one day where I was able to put together two good runs when I knew I had good skiing. I think it was a combination of good training and a good approach. »
However, alpine skiing is a sport of mistakes. And above all a sport of details. “There will always be mistakes and it’s a sport that is played on hundredths of a second. So when there are mistakes, but you ski well, I think you can still be able to show great things, even if the result is not representative. »
In these situations, the best way to evaluate your progress is to constantly question yourself. “Staying in a good mentality is a good indicator to measure how my season is going. So to find my bearings, I ask myself if I still love this sport and if the answer is yes, that means I am on the right track. »
And if she ever doubts it, her family will be there to remind her.
