Manuel Feller: After the World Cup debacle in his home country – it hurts extremely!

Manuel Feller: After the World Cup debacle in his home country – it hurts extremely!

Manuel Feller, the Austrian ski star, has to digest a painful defeat when returning from the 2025 Ski World Championships in Saalbach-Hinterglemm. Despite expectations of winning a medal, he finished the final slalom on Sunday in a thankless fourth place, just 27 hundredths of a second behind bronze Linus Strasser of Germany. “It hurts extremely,” explained the 32-year-old Feller, letting his emotions run wild. He emphasized that it was the biggest disappointment of his career because he was not able to achieve the medal he had hoped for in his home ski resort Laola1 reported.

The disappointment was particularly strong for Feller because he had said before the race that it would be the biggest defeat of his life to remain without a medal. “I put everything into this race and put all my focus on this day,” he said, while speaking of the positive mood of the 23,000 spectators. Despite the trauma, he couldn't hide his respect for the audience and was happy for the support, but explained that "three beers alone" won't be enough to deal with the feeling of emptiness. He admitted that he didn't risk enough in the first run and now has to deal with the idea that he wasn't attacking enough to win the medal Small newspaper noted.

While Feller tried to distract himself with intense requests for autographs and photos from fans, he showed that the fans' support is priceless for him. “It was an incredible atmosphere and a cool moment to swing here with green,” he reflected on the slalom. But despite the enthusiasm, it turns out that the disappointment runs deep and it will take some time for him to come to terms with this experience. “It won’t be easy,” he admitted, tears showing his vulnerable side. He plans to pick himself up again and tackle the next challenge, although he doesn't yet know exactly how quickly he will succeed.