Asa Miller (left) preparing for his last day of ski training for Wednesday’s slalom event in the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games at the National Alpine Skiing Centre. | Photo from POC
CEBU CITY, Philippines—After faltering in the men’s giant slalom of the Winter Olympics, Asa Miller aims for redemption in Wednesday’s (Feb. 16, 2022) men’s slalom event in the Winter Olympics.
The 21-year old Filipino-American skier went to the course on Tuesday to reset his focus for the next day’s race and shake off frustrations from his mishap on Sunday in the men’s giant slalom, where he crashed out of the competition in just 20 seconds of his run.
“Trust your feet and trust yourself as the skier you are. It’s similar to what I told you before—the best you can possibly ski on race day is to ski like yourself,” said Miller’s coach, Will Gregorak.
The start list won’t be known until during the coaches’ meeting set later Tuesday, but definitely, Miller will be up against world-class opponents Dave Ryding of the United Staets and Alain Baxter of the WUnited Kingdom, both bemedalled Olympians.
“You’re not going to become another person and you are already an excellent skier. All you have to do is find the feeling that you already know. When you get into the gate, it’s just you and the course. Go and have some fun by making your best turn,” Gregorak told Miller.
Besides Ryding, the other favorites include World Cup veteran Lucas Braathen of Norway, 2017 world champion Manuel Ferrer of Austria, 2018 world junior champion Noel Clement of France, and Pyeongchang 2018 Olympics team event gold medalist Daniel Yule of Great Britain.
Gregorak added that the men’s slalom is not as challenging as the giant slalom, but the changing weather and the incessant snowfall at the National Alpine Skiing Center will be another factor for Miller’s run tomorrow.
The giant slalom’s first run is also set at 10 a.m. and the second run at 1:45 p.m.
/bmjo
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