SBX talk with Alessandro Haemmerle

Alessandro Haemmerle: 28-year-old Austrian, SBX Vice-World Champion 2021, three-time SBX overall crystal globe winner and therefore at the moment the most successful SBX athlete around. We sat down with the charismatic Austrian to talk about a very successful last season, additional challenges when competing during a world wide pandemic and to see what’s in store for the upcoming season, which is about to start at the end of November.

Alessandro, last season was a big success for you – you managed to achieve the “threepeat”, meaning you won the SBX Overall Crystal Globe three seasons in a row. You also grabbed your first medal at World Championships (silver) in a super tight finish battle with Lucas Eguibar (ESP). How does it feel looking back on last year’s accomplishments and can you name your favourite moment from last season?

Thinking about last season feels great. I had an unbelievable season, almost reaching every big final except for one. The thought of trying to repeat or improve that this upcoming season feels like an insane goal. It’s always hard to pick one moment in such a great year, but looking back, I think it was winning the World Cup at Reiteralm, which brought the most joy for me.

As we are approaching another season with a big event – the Olympic Winter Games - is preparing for a season with a major event like the World Champs or Olympic Winter Games different than for any other season?

I try not to focus so hard on these kinds of events. My focus almost always belongs to the World Cup, as it is simply the event, we compete the most. I see them more as a great chance within this season to achieve something special. Especially, after winning silver I know what it feels like to score in one of these events and I am sure that the Olympics would feel even better. So, it’s always there, it’s part in the back of your head preparing for that year, maybe giving some little extra motivation.

So far, you competed at 2 Olympic Winter Games (2014 Sochi, 2018 PyeongChang). At the last ones you made it into the small final and finished 7th. What is your take-away from these major competitions?

My first Olympics were more for the experience, we (the whole team) made some mistakes and learned from them. The 2018 games were, where I felt ready for a top 3 spot, but in SBX sometimes it’s just not the right day for it to happen. Being involved in a crash with actually 3 people and watching the gold medal winner crawl up the hill in front of you was really hard for quite some time for me. After all, the 2018 games were really wild and weird for me, being lucky not getting injured, sad about my teammate’s crazy injury and disappointed about the outcome.

And what are your goals for next season and of course, especially in regards of the Olympic Winter Games?

I have never felt more prepared for the Olympics than this year. That doesn’t guarantee anything, but it gives confidence to being able to achieve that big goal of getting a medal at the games. And, of course, I’ll try to step on as many podiums as possible throughout the World Cup season, maybe get a “four-peat”? – who knows.

Is it different riding in a heat with your teammates than with athletes from other nationalities? And if so, why and what do you prefer?

Yeah, it’s different for sure, you spend most of your days training with your teammates and you want them to succeed as well. So, you take a little more care for their needs in the heat than you might do for others. I do not prefer to ride against them.

Who is the athlete on tour, who pushes you the most and how?

It used to be Pierre (Vaultier) and I think it still is, even if he’s not competing anymore, I have his stats to chase. His way of riding and the podiums he has been able to achieve are something I look up to.

What is your favourite snowboard cross element to ride and why?

I love rollers, they are actually pretty easy to ride, but you can give all the power you have got and really feel the increase of speed you get which feels addictive.

What is the biggest challenge for you when competing during a worldwide pandemic and how do you deal with it?

Travelling all the hours with a mask is not the best thing, also being exposed to a higher risk of infection, especially far from home, maybe facing a quarantine in a hotel or a bad infection in a foreign country. It’s also weird when you are finally there, you don’t really get to do anything else than staying in your hotel and ride the mountain, sometimes feels a little like you are caged in this bubble of competing. I, and I am sure everyone else, would like to go back to normal, nevertheless, I am happy to be able to compete!

What would you like to see in the future of the sport of snowboard cross?

I’d like to see our sport grow. The team event was a first step in this direction, but the mixed-team event made things a little harder. The balance between female and male riders within the teams are off, making some teams not even able to compete in these competitions as they simply don’t have a teammate.

So, I could imagine that the sprint event, as a separate competition, would be a nice addition to the tour. Looking at the future, it seems like snow will be even harder to produce, maybe for rougher years for some locations a sprint option would be more suitable, instead of cancelling straight away. Maybe even as an extra Olympic event?

What’s your favourite country to visit on the World Cup tour and why?

I really like to come to North America races, because of the life and snow over there, unfortunately these are really rare these days.

Spain is really hard to beat. Slush snow, warm and sunny weather, nice food and the Mediterranean flair, gives me some holiday feeling while being on a competition.

We hope, this little Q + A got you all excited for the upcoming season. We have still some weeks to go, but you know…time flies.

You can check out the FIS Snowboard Cross World Cup calendar 2021/22 HERE and we highly recommend you check in on our website on a more regular basis from now on, since we will be delivering more and more info about the upcoming season.