Marco Odermatt Rejects Million-Dollar Offer, Amuses Norwegians

– It’s an insane amount for two days of skiing, Atle Lie McGrath exclaims to NRK.

According to Swiss media, the Kazakh multi-millionaire hoped to spend two days with the Swiss ski star on the slopes.

Confronted with the lucrative offer of his Swiss rival, Lie McGrath bursts into laughter. After he has collected himself, he describes the million offer as very interesting, but the Norwegian alpinist says he would be skeptical of a similar offer himself.

– I would have had to do thorough research first. Know who this person is, what kind of business he has, what it is about and who is involved. So it’s not an automatic yes, but that doesn’t mean anyone is saying no either.

Røper offers to Norwegian stars

Henrik Kristoffersen jokingly says that he would certainly accept the two million for two days with a Kazakh skiing enthusiast. Slalåmesset says that he himself has not received any similar requests, at least that he is aware of.

– Not that I know of. It may have come, but there are a lot of requests that come in that I have no idea about, Kristoffersen answers NRK’s ​​question.

Atle Lie McGrath reveals that there have been a number of exciting offers to former Norwegian alpine stars.

– I know that some of these guys who have been on the team in the past, some of the bigger names, they have also received very interesting offers over the years with ski trips of just a couple of days for wild sums, he says.

– I haven’t received an offer like that yet, and that’s probably just as well. Then you don’t have to decide on it.

Neither has Aleksander Aamodt Kilde. He still believes that the interest in skiing from Kazakhstan must be seen as positive.

– Basically, it’s good that people from Kazakhstan care about skiing, that’s perhaps the number one starting point. Interest in the sport is what is most important, says Kilde.

Thanks no

However, the million offer was flatly rejected by Odermatt himself, in consultation with manager Michael Schiendorfer.

The offer of 150,000 Swiss francs, according to manager Schiendorfer, joins the series of lucrative offers Odermatt has received. He says the requests come in almost daily.

– Marco gives up a lot of money.

– We agreed straight away: we don’t want to get involved in that sort of thing. If Marco spread himself too thin with such commitments, he would not perform as well, Schiendorfer tells the Swiss press

Hunting 100

It is hardly a coincidence that it is exactly Odermatt that receives unique requests like this.

The Swiss has dominated the alpine circus in recent years. The dominance has given him 47 individual victories in the World Cup, which makes Odermatt almost impossible to beat, especially in giant slalom.

– Odermatt is difficult to beat, very difficult, but it is possible. Everything is possible, says Lie McGrath.

For Henrik Kristoffersen, 100 podium places in the World Cup hovers in front of him as one of the big goals, even in an Olympic season. Currently, the Rælingen driver has 95 of them.

– I have more opportunities to take 100 podium places than Olympic gold, so it is a bit difficult to weigh them up against each other, but I think it is a greater achievement from my own point of view and my own career to have 100 podium places than to take one Olympic gold.

PS! Friday is the giant slalom in Copper Mountain. The first half starts at 18.00, while the second half is at 21.00. The race is broadcast on Viaplay.