Comebacks of Braathen and Hirscher put Brazil and Netherlands in Alpine skiing spotlight

By ERIC WILLEMSEN The Associated Press

Lucas Pinheiro Braathen speaks during a press conference on the occasion of the Alpine Skiing World Cup season opener, in Soelden, Austria, Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)[ASSOCIATED PRESS/Jean-Christophe Bott]

SOELDEN, Austria (AP) — Two ski stars coming out of retirement put the spotlights in the buildup to the 2024-25 World Cup season on Brazil and the Netherlands. The two nations are usually not associated with top-level ski racing. Former World Cup slalom champion Lucas Pinheiro Braathen will start for Brazil after racing for Norway until leaving the sport a year ago. Two-time Olympic gold medalist and record eight-time overall champion Marcel Hirscher returns after five years and has switched from the Austrian to the Dutch ski federation. Hirscher says “it makes no difference if I wear an orange race suit or a red-white-red one.”