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SKIING

Riesch’s row with Vonn simmers on

An ongoing row between alpine ski stars Maria Riesch of Germany and Lindsey Vonn of the US hit more bumpy terrain Wednesday when Riesch's manager and husband accused the American of lying.

Riesch's row with Vonn simmers on
Photo: DPA

Once boasting one of the closest friendships on the circuit – Riesch’s family used to host Vonn regularly during the festive season – the pair’s relationship has turned sour in the wake of Riesch ending Vonn’s stranglehold on the World Cup title.

“I stopped talking to Maria after the first leg of the slalom at Spindleruv (Czech Republic on March 11-12),” Vonn, who had won the title the three previous seasons, wrote on her Facebook page on Saturday.

“She had given a series of negative interviews about me and has since continued to talk in a negative fashion about me. I am very hurt by her actions and I honestly don’t know where our friendship stands at this point.”

Vonn did not attend Riesch’s wedding on April 14, justifying her no-show by claiming both she and her husband Thomas had not been made to feel welcome. After returning from their honeymoon, Riesch’s new husband Marcus Höfl hit back at Vonn’s allegations.

“We have discussed whether one should react to this at all,” Höfl told the Thursday edition of Munich newspaper TZ. “Now, it’s just getting ridiculous. But on the other hand, Lindsey is lying again and we can’t just leave that unchallenged.

“She is trying to make out the whole thing is a cat-fight and that Maria is a bitch. She is just getting caught up more and more in their lies.”

Höfl insists Riesch has never said anything negative about Vonn.

“They should substantiate what they are saying,” said the German. “They can’t, because it is simply not true. Lindsey says she personally congratulated Maria (after winning her title), which is not true. To date, neither she, nor her representatives, have ever done that.”

Höfl questioned whether the pair, both 26, had even been genuine friends.

“The question is, was this ever a real friendship or was it just Lindsey was okay about things as long as she was ahead of Maria?,” he asked. “In any case, what she has done has become ridiculous.”

AFP/mry

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SKIING

Snow report: What’s the latest outlook for French ski resorts this winter?

Good news for skiers in France, as a mild December has given way to a cold blast in early January that's bringing some much-needed snow.

Snow report: What's the latest outlook for French ski resorts this winter?

After a mostly dry and mild December, snow returned to the the Pyrenees on Friday.

Meanwhile most resorts in the Alps have been able to stay open after a promising early start to the ski season, thanks to fresh snowfalls, with more on the way this weekend.

Pyrenees

Snow has returned in the Pyrenees. Some 5cm fell overnight into Friday, January 5th in eastern parts of the mountain range, with forecasts predicting a further 15cm to 20cm to be on the ground 24 hours later. The region had not seen any snow since December 2nd.

In Angles, 20cm of snow had fallen at higher altitudes by mid-morning on Friday.

Further west, numerous resorts in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département remained closed this week after early December snow had melted in mild conditions that have dominated France in recent weeks, but significant snowfall is expected over the weekend into Monday, and resorts are hoping that they will see enough to open.

One resort, Artouste, has been unable to offer skiing since the start of the season on December 23rd due to a lack of snow. A scenic rail service – usually reserved for warmer months – has kept the resort going. It is set to stop running on Friday, amid expectations of enough snow to finally open the slopes.

READ ALSO Climate crisis: ’90 percent’ of Europe’s ski resorts face critical snow shortages

Alps 

Many ski resorts opened on time, or even a little earlier than scheduled last month, after significant early snow fall, and have enjoyed deposits in the first days of 2024. But, even here, resort managers welcomed the promise of more significant snow this weekend.

Some resorts weren’t so fortunate. Ski areas in Gérardmer, in the Vosges, were still closed in the week leading up to Christmas because of poor snow conditions, but they are hoping for enough snow to finally get started this weekend, while La Bresse-Honeck was using ‘stocked snow’ made by using snow that fell earlier in the winter months to stay open as recently as December 30th.

In the Northern Alps, resorts such as Alpe d’Huez benefited from fresh snowfall on December 22nd, while Val d’Isère had new snow on December 29th. In the Southern Alps, Les Orres’ last pre-New Year snow was on December 8th.

And the French Alps have enjoyed more snow since the start of the year. There’s at least 50cm of fresh snow on the higher slopes of Les Gets and Morzine, for example, a significant improvement on the same time last year, when the resorts were among several that had very little snow to speak of.

In Chamonix, meanwhile, snow has fallen on eight of the last 14 days, with more expected every day between Friday and Monday.

Massif Central

As the post on X / Twitter shows, the Massif Central has not had the best of winters for snow so far. But between 30cm and 50cm is expected in Le Lioran by Monday. 

READ ALSO ‘So many barriers since Brexit’: The French ski businesses no longer willing to hire Brits

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