VENTURE Mind Set Win
Prep like a pro “Marco has found a way to perform at the highest level through routine, even in the most stressful situations,” says York-Peter Klöppel (pictured), head of mental performance at the Red Bull Athlete Performance Center in Thalgau, Austria. “Now find your own anchor.”
FOCUS
Stay grounded
World Cup champion and Olympic gold-medallist ski racer Marco Odermatt has found a winning formula. Here, the 26-year-old reveals how to train your mind for victory
“In Switzerland, when we learn to walk we learn to ski,” says Odermatt (pictured). “As a kid I dreamt of becoming a ski racer, but I was never good at the important races. At the point where you really have to perform, I couldn’t do it. “Changing that was a process. I started early on with mental training and found for me it’s about the preparation: every training day or race is different, but I have the same routine for the 10 minutes before the start of every race. “I start with the warm-up: we inspect the run, then I go through it in my head many times and really visualise the track. I usually get into my bubble – race mode – maybe three or four minutes before I start. Then it’s just pure 92
focus and good memories, good thoughts, which are important things to have in my mind. “[The Beijing Olympics in 2022] was the most important race of my career to date. I’d had a really disappointing first week, and it all came down to my last chance in the giant slalom, where I was the favourite. I felt the pressure of not yet having a medal. It was meant to be cold and sunny, but we woke to bad weather – 20 centimetres of fresh snow. “After the first round, I was leading, which was good but also the most difficult [starting position] for the final runs. Then the fog came in and the race got delayed. I’d slept badly, so I took a nap between those two runs. I stayed in the
“I have the same routine before I start every race” Marco Odermatt, Olympic skiing champion
restaurant, and the other athletes were telling me, ‘You have to go to the start!’ I said, ‘No. I’m taking it easy today.’ “I inspected the run as usual before the race. In the starting area, the weather was dark and ugly. Everybody was nervous. But I was super-calm somehow. I entered the start gate, my one goal to win this medal. I just knew I had to do everything the same as always. I thought good thoughts and got my mind ready. “The race was very difficult – you couldn’t see the bumps. But I’m an athlete who goes all-in. I put my whole mind and my body into the race, and I found the flow, started taking risks. When I got to the finish and saw the number one, the relief and the emotions [were huge]. Every situation is different, but I found I can still perform. That gives me a lot of confidence today.”
Listen to Odermatt’s full interview on the Mind Set Win podcast; redbull.com
“Think about something that helps ensure you can perform at your best each day. It could be a coffee in the morning, the kiss goodbye to your partner… Then use that the next time you face some adversity, to ground yourself and get back into your comfort zone.”
No change “Stick to it, avoiding new behaviours. For example, if I usually have cereal for breakfast I should still have that on the morning of, say, a job interview. And if I don’t drink a lot of coffee, just because I’ve slept badly I shouldn’t then drink three cups, because that could upset my whole system. Things can go wrong and there can be adversity. It’s about finding the anchors you can keep the same.”
Scan the QR code to hear the Mind Set Win podcast THE RED BULLETIN
SANDRO BAEBLER, DAVID MARTINEZ
Racing thoughts
