On the slopes, he’s an artist. Alexis Pinturault dances between the doors, rarely goes out of line, plays with the chronometer and the laws of gravity. With him, mastering time and space is an art of living. But at the end of September, the French skier had not planned that Le Wakpala, the bar-restaurant where he had fixed an appointment for us on the shores of Lake Annecy, in Saint-Jorioz (Haute-Savoie), would be closed, summer season ended. Second departure at the snack bar next door. Seated on the terrace a few meters from the clear waters under a generous sun, Pinturault has just come out of an intense physical preparation session. Jeans, sneakers and creamy white sweatshirt, “Pintu” appears relaxed.
The man is known to be discreet, reserved. He is asked if the fact of having become the best skier in the world a few months earlier has changed him. Not really. He just confesses that he now sees things “With more lightness”, that he learned, with the successes and the requests of the media, to say a little more about him. “Never with superlatives”, mountain modesty, no doubt. Alexis Pinturault is however sure of his talent, which allowed him to lift, on March 20, the day of his 30 years, the big crystal globe of the general classification of the World Cup. The first for a French skier since Luc Alphand in 1997.
For the aperitif, it will be Badoit rouge. The fault with the schedule, 3:30 p.m., which did not really plead for the alcoholic scull. Too bad, we knew Alexis Pinturault was a wine lover, tasted in particular at the Auberge du Père Bise, by chef Jean Sulpice, a popular restaurant in Talloires, on the other side of the lake. “Its sommelier is connected with natural and biodynamic wines. Wines from Savoy, Ventoux, Valle d’Aosta or Valais. Quite close to here, but it was a nice trip in the glass ”, remembers the skier, who allows himself two or three sips during the week, “Never on a competition weekend”. Present by his side, his wife, Romane, who manages his relations with the press and the sponsors, smiles: “It’s a bit more summer. “
His time has come
Alexis Pinturault’s sliding allows him to shine as a giant, his favorite discipline, as in super-G and slalom, two events – one speed, the other technical – with opposing styles. Nicknamed “the Beast” in his younger years, Pinturault is also a physique – 1.80 meters for 80 kg – which finds its full expression in steep icy slopes, capable of withstanding 3 G of pressure in the bends between the doors. Athletic qualities which allowed him to emerge victorious last winter from a breathtaking final against the Swiss prodigy Marco Odermatt – the two men must meet on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 December in Val-d’Isère for a stage of the Cup of the world.
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