'Show time, go time': Recharged Regez ready for new season

World and Olympic champion Ryan Regez has arrived at the new ski cross season in Val Thorens with "a huge smile" on his face.

Regez spent the off season recharging his batteries, spending time "surfing, chilling, sightseeing" in Central America after an exhausting season that saw him win double gold at the world championships in Engadin.

"The off season was great, I really enjoyed it," he said.

"I went traveling for a bit - I spent a month in Nicaragua - then gym and summer training went really well.

"I really enjoy summers anyway. You've got the long days, it's really sociable with all your friends and you get to catch up on all the social events which you miss out on during the season. Honestly, I had a blast."

The Swiss star says the ski cross season is always fun but can at the same time be draining, leaving him needing that time to himself.

"There's a lot of pressure, there's a lot of focus on you, and it takes a toll on your body and mind," he said. "So it's the best way for me, personally, to recover and recuperate and top up the batteries.

"I usually end up traveling quite a bit at the end of the season. Nicaragua was good - exactly what I needed."

Last week marked ten years exactly since the 32-year-old made his first appearance on the World Cup circuit, but Regez says his enthusiasm for the sport has not waned with time.

"I've had some injuries unfortunately, but that's part of the deal," he says. "Fighting my way back and coming back stronger time after time just gives me a certain sense of pride.

"I've been on the tour for so long. Still, after the first two training runs in Val Thorens, I've just got a huge smile on my face. I love the sport so much, and it gives me so much."

Val Thorens is the first of five stops for the athletes before they take part in the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Games. There's a quick turnaround to the night race in Arosa next week, after which two races in Innichen will round up the action in 2025.

In the last two weeks in January the athletes will be putting the finishing touches on their Olympic preparations - should they be selected to take part - in Veysonnaz and Val di Fassa.

Regez won gold at the last Olympic Games in Beijing, before going on to win individual and team gold at the world championships earlier this year. He has shown himself to be someone who can zone in and deliver in the big moments.

"I guess I can prepare myself well for things that I enjoy," he says.

"Most of the races where I've performed well is either due to pressure or because I just really love the place," he adds with a laugh.

With his Olympics defence coming up on the horizon, does the road to Milano Cortina feel like a marathon or a sprint to Regez?

"It's a marathon. It's so far away," he says.

"It's the start of the season, such a long way to go to the Olympics. I know what my master plan is, and I'm going to keep working to that."

For all the mental and physical work that goes on behind the scenes, Regez cuts an excited figure to be back among his Swiss team-mates as well as with the wider ski cross community. And he's ready to make it another memorable season for himself.

"The atmosphere, the feeling to be back on tour - everyone's just happy to be here, because this is what we've worked for all year," he said. "This is show time, go time."

The new ski cross season gets under way with races in Val Thorens on Thursday the 11th and Friday the 12th of December.