The Swiss Gilles Roulin chose an unusual way to end his ski career. He enlists the help of Barack Obama.
Zurich – Over, over: Gilles Roulin has ended his career. The Swiss competed in the Ski World Cup over 100 times, and the downhill skier finished in the top 15 nine times. It was never going to be enough to achieve great success - fourth place in Val Gardena in 2017 and participation in the 2018 Olympic Games in Pyeongchang were those biggest days on the world stage. Nevertheless, the ski circus is losing a popular figure.
Ski ace ends his chairlift career “shortly and painlessly” – Obama plays a supporting role
This is also underlined by the way in which the 29-year-old now says goodbye: casually swinging in the chair lift with a reference to Barack Obama.
In the video that Roulin uploaded to Instagram, he first explains in his best Swiss German: “Short and painless: I have decided to end my skiing career after the Swiss championships.”
Gilles Roulin: “The willingness and will were no longer really there”
He then thanks everyone who has accompanied him over the last few years. Above all, of course, his parents, who “supported him from the beginning”. “Without them, nothing would have been possible.” In a statement from the Swiss Ski Association, Roulin is also quoted as follows: “I think if you had told me as a little boy what I was able to experience through my sport, my eyes would have been lit up.”
It was already becoming apparent that he would now be drawing a line at the age of 29. “Especially at the start, it just felt different than before, the willingness and will were no longer really there - and so I had to realize that the path for me should now go in a different direction,” it says message further. However, it is not yet clear where exactly this path leads.
Roulin ends his skiing career and indulges in a little Obama joke
And what does the Roulin exit have to do with former US President Barack Obama? It's simple: Roulin quickly uploaded Obama's legendary "mic drop speech" in order to make his message clear to all his followers who don't speak Schwyzerdütsch.
However, he had changed one detail compared to the original: instead of “Obama out” it suddenly said “Roulin out” – so the Swiss allowed himself a little joke. He wrote in his post: “I say goodbye. In the second video, the colleague also says goodbye. For those who don't speak Swiss German, In the second video a friend of mine explains everything in English.”
With the end of the season, there are currently resignations in many winter sports - a German ski ace is also saying goodbye.
(akl)