By Simon Evans
YANQING, China (Reuters) – The long wait to discover exactly what kind of downhill course has been created in the mountains outside Beijing ended on Thursday when the world’s top skiers finally took to the piste.
Switzerland’s Stefan Rogentin posted the fastest of the early training runs with his 1:44 and Spanish outsider Adur Etxezarreta was second quickest.
But the times meant little on a day on which many skiers were simply getting a feel for what awaits in Sunday’s opening race.
The course, created entirely with artificial snow, offers spectacular views of the surrounding mountains and countryside, 80 km (50 miles) outside Beijing, and the scenery was enhanced by glorious sunshine.
Chinese officials will be delighted with the global broadcast images of a region they hope to turn into a centre for winter sports. For the skiers, it was all about discovering what lines and techniques will bring maximum benefit.
The course has never held a World Cup race or a test event of any kind.
“We had very little information, I saw a video of Chinese guys training here last year,” said Austrian double Olympic champion Matthias Mayer.
“You get a little bit of any idea of the terrain but you never know for sure. So it was definitely more inspection today than racing,” he added.
That said, the smiles from the skiers indicated that this was a process they were enjoying.
“In terms of difficulty I give it 7.5 out of 10,” said Italian contender Christof Innerhofer. “But the fun factor was close to 10.”
Certainly there was little that was familiar to the skiers used to the classic downhills of the World Cup circuit in Europe.
“You can’t compare with any other World Cup race, the snow is really good, really hard, maybe a little bit like the American races, but I would say it is the Beijing downhill,” said Mayer.
There are two more days of training on the course before the medal event itself and the favourites such as World Cup downhill leader Aleksander Aamodt Kilde of Norway and recent Kitzbuehel winner Beat Feuz of Switzerland will certainly up the intensity.
(Reporting by Simon Evans; Editing by Robert Birsel)
