Tessa, is the Super Slalom in La Plagne (an event created in particular by her companion Julien Lizeroux) still the best way to end a season for you?
Tessa Worley:
Yes.
Honestly, it's super festive.
There is a great atmosphere at the start and finish.
Between the two, I must admit that the effort is very intense and painful, I would say, but everyone gets involved and puts their all in, which is funny to see.
Even more painful at the end of an Olympic season which will have been very long...
I don't know if it was very painful because of this Olympic season, or quite simply because it had been three years since we had covered this Super Slalom due to the health crisis (the 2020 and 2021 editions had been cancelled).
Suddenly, I was no longer too accustomed to this type of long effort.
It was particularly hard, with quite demanding conditions, very hard, even icy snow.
It shook a little bit for four kilometers (smile).
But luckily, there are a lot of people all along the track and that gives energy to finish the route.
I didn't think I could last a whole season in terms of consistency.
Tessa Worley
Looking back today, what is your assessment of your season?
A very good record.
I really had a great season.
I had a blast on every competition.
I wanted to give my all, to have fun.
I felt that physically, I was well because of a preparation during which we had made the right choices with my staff.
I was rather in the right tone and that allowed me to ski among the best.
When this is the case, it is always more pleasant to be in this position.
I was able to compete in two disciplines (giant and Super G) showing myself to be fairly constant and regular at a high level.
And then this season ended ideally with fireworks at home, near Méribel, in front of an incredible audience and with an outcome that I didn't even dare to dream of.
Were you surprised to be able to win back the Giant's Crystal Globe five years after your first one?
Quite frankly, I didn't think I could.
I didn't think I could last a whole season in terms of consistency.
And finally, that's what I did by being second for a good part of the season.
Nevertheless, I saw the domination of the Swedish Sara Hector who had a magnificent season, with a lot of commitment, power and a very strong ski.
So I thought she was going to win that crystal globe.
But here it is, skiing is also about hazards and you have to be on top until the end of the season.
Sara had the misfortune to go out in the second heat at home, in Are, which allowed me to get back into the race before the final test in Méribel and that made for an incredible final, which was favorable to me (she finishes 4th against 14th only for the Swede).
Inevitably, when we are less fluid, we force more and we come to take risks.
Tessa Worley
You evoke the vagaries of a season. It's hard not to mention the Beijing Olympics that didn't smile on you...
Yes, it was a strong sporting disappointment.
At the Games, I wanted to play for the podium, as I managed to do throughout the World Cup season.
I was in the right conditions to do it, but after that the Games remain a one-day competition.
There, I did not manage to evolve at my best level, to be comfortable on the skis and on this race.
Inevitably, when we are less fluid, we force more and we end up taking risks.
But it's all the salt of the Games to attempt a kind of all or nothing.
Unfortunately for me, it ended in a giant fall for me, but I have no regrets about the way I approached these Games and the way I experienced them.
I took advantage of the event,
especially my role as flag bearer which will remain an incredible memory.
Sporting disappointment is part of a high-level career.
Read alsoJO 2022: Olympic end clap for Tessa Worley
Don't you think you put too much pressure on yourself at these Games, between your role as flag bearer and your desire to win your first Olympic medal, the only one missing from your list?
No, honestly, I don't think so.
Four years ago, in Pyeongchang, yes, that had been the case.
I hadn't been able to relax.
But I didn't feel that in Beijing.
I didn't have a pressure problem, but more adaptation.
I didn't have the right tools and I didn't know how to adapt quickly, whereas others did very well.
Some were simply better than me.
In Beijing, you announced that these were your last Games. Did winning the Crystal Globe from the Giant Behind change anything in your decision?
No not at all.
My career is already full and very long.
Projecting myself over four years is far too much and you also have to know how to leave room for the youngest.
I have already given well physically and mentally throughout my career.
From now on, I focus on short-term objectives, in this case my… future holidays (laughs).
I also want to take the time to savor what I have accomplished this season and then I will see how to remobilize myself for the next one, if I decide to do it.
Do you imagine that the next World Championships in France, in Méribel-Courchevel (from February 6 to 19, 2023), could constitute a formidable clap of the end?
Yes quite.
It is an element of my reflection to know if I leave for a round or not.
I don't have to make such an important decision on the fly.
Hence my desire to give myself a few holidays to recover and then decide on the continuation, or not, of my career.
But obviously that Worlds at home, it's a strong argument.