DEMANDING ATHLETES

For Atomic, their top athletes are local product Hirscher, who lives close to Altenmarkt, and Shiffrin, who won the slalom gold in Sochi and became the overall World Cup women's champion this year.

"I started skiing on Atomic when I was 12 and have skied Atomic skis, boots, and bindings since then," the American said.

"It was just a natural progression for me to stick with the skis that I had been so confident on as I started racing on the World Cup."

Atomic, like the other manufacturers HEAD and Frances' Rossignol, send their technical experts to accompany the top racers at every event, working closely with their coaches and national federations, to tune and service their gear like a Formula One team to suit the conditions.

"They're athletes, they're champions, they're demanding," Mayrhofer added.

"Therefore you need a team. For Hirscher, for Shiffrin you have a dedicated team with ski makers, boot specialists, you have all the experts there."

With the event now in sight, Mayrhofer said he felt quietly confident all of their planning would pay off.

"I have a good feeling we are nicely prepared. I feel good we will have everything we need," he said. "Then it's always (necessary) of course to be a bit lucky also.

"But we have great athletes, we have all the stuff together which is needed to win."

Reuters