Czech Zabystran proves smaller nations can succeed against powerhouses

Just before Christmas, Jan Zabystran (CZE/ Kaestle) laid down the run of his career and demonstrated that it is possible for athletes from the so-called smaller nations to defy the odds and produce top results.

The 27-year-old Czech pulled off a shocking upset in the Val Gardena Super G, starting bib No. 29, defeating Marco Odermatt (SUI/ Stockli) by 0.22 seconds. It was the first-ever Audi FIS World Cup victory by a male racer from Czechia or the former Czechoslovakia.

Zabystran has traveled solo on tour, learning to be self-reliant and handling important race-related responsibilities independently. However, he is now benefiting from and credits much of his success to cooperation with the German ski team.

“It was pretty hard before I joined the Germans – I tried cooperating with friends, but it wasn’t full cooperation like racing with a federation, so that was tough,” Zabystran said, after the historic victory in Val Gardena.

“Maybe it’s possible in slalom, but in speed it is hard to do everything alone. I tried with two different trainers and it was not easy, but this past year the Germans have taken me as one of their own. I train with them, sleep at the same hotels, and prepare before races with them.

“It has helped tremendously and I hope our positivity together will push all of us to better results,” he said.

Odermatt sat comfortably in the leader’s chair, nearly certain that he was headed toward a 51st Audi FIS World Cup victory, until the Czech charged down the Sassolungo piste and snatched away the win.

The current overall World Cup leader from the dominant Swiss team says the more nations attaining success, the better. “Absolutely, it’s very good for our sport – we need as many countries as possible in the top 30, top 10, or even ready to take victories,” Odermatt said.

It is an uphill climb for athletes competing alone versus better funded, organised and large staffed powerhouse nations like Switzerland, Austria, Norway, and Italy.

Sixty-four racers representing 17 countries competed at the Downhill in Val Gardena on 20 December.

Just six were single athletes from their respective nations: Felix Monsen (SWE/ Atomic), Henrik Von Appen (CHI/ Head), Marco Pfiffner (LIE/ Salomon), Roy-Alexander Steudle (GBR/ Atomic), Elian Lehto (FIN/ Fischer), and Juhan Luik (EST/ Head). Zabystran was only joined by his Czech teammate Tommy Lochmann.

Estonian Juhan Luik is another racer who has persevered as an independent athlete representing his country, training and competing under various structures and models. It has been a country-hopping journey for the 28-year-old racer, who has demonstrated resiliency, doing whatever it takes to ski fast.

“I started racing in Estonia and then moved to Finland to join a ski club there, where I was for five years. After that, I used a Finnish personal trainer for a few years and then decided to move moved to Europe,” said Luik.

“I met the Austrian coach Hans Unterberger at the 2021 Cortina World Championships and moved to Kaprun.

“Then I met the Slovenians, which has been one of the biggest and most important steps for me. They welcomed me with open arms as a small athlete with no proper ski federation support.”

Juik has often handled other crucial matters himself.

“I don't have a service man – I’m tuning skis by myself, but I do get some help from the Slovenians about which waxes to use. It’s still a work in progress,” Juik said.

Lacking sufficient financial support from his national ski association has also created stress and uncertainty.

“I need to gather most of my financial support myself and from my closest circle. My main sponsors and supporters are my family and lovely girlfriend’s family. It's really difficult to get financial support in Estonia through alpine skiing.

“I fear that my season could end sooner than I expect because of these financial problems,” Luik admits.

Liechtenstein’s Marco Pfiffner has faced similar hurdles, despite competing for the tiny nation which became prominent thanks to Hanni and Andreas Wenzel in the late 70s and early 80s, and later with six-time Olympian Marco Buechel.

“I think the biggest challenge is organising everything by yourself and finding good training conditions,” Pfiffner says. “We can tune skis, although maybe not as fast and proficiently as other countries.

“I was fortunate to train for four to five years was the Swiss guys, but now I'm with the Germans. I think it has been a good solution preparing for races with them and analyzing video together.

“However, I’m still tuning my own skis, coordinating registration for races and organizing my own hotels, so those are the biggest challenges,” Pfiffner explains.

As the lone racer from Liechtenstein in Val Gardena, Phiffner finished 49th in the Saslong Downhill.

Pfiffner and Luik were thrilled to witness Zabynstran achieve his hard-earned Super G win in Italy. The Czech racer even surprised himself, while valiantly demonstrating that Alpine skiing’s juggernaut countries and their well funded federations are not invincible.

“His win was quite the surprise and put a smile on everyone's face,” Pfiffner says. “It’s really nice to see a small nation is winning, but Jan is an absolutely a great skier with excellent technique.”

“I dreamed that maybe someday I could be top three, but this win, wow, it's just crazy,” Zabystran said.

It was not only a monumental victory for Zabynstran and Czechia, but also an inspiring moment providing great hope for all racers who have fought adversity, while competing for less prominent nations. And further proof that Alpine skiing is a truly global sport.