Anna-Lena Forster had a real premonition. She won four titles at the World Paralympic Snow Sports Championships in Lillehammer in January and, of course, has been asked if she plans to repeat that at the Paralympics in Beijing. Forster then urged caution, after all, her strongest competitor in monoskiing, the discipline for wheelchair users, was not there: Momoka Muraoka from Japan.
On Sunday it was clear that Forster would not win four gold medals. She took silver for the second time in Yanquing, after the downhill also in the Super-G, behind Muraoka in each case. On Monday, in the Super Combined, she won Germany’s first gold at these Winter Games. She cried twice: first with disappointment, after six seconds behind Muraoka in Super-G; then with joy because she caught up in the slalom and ended up having a lead of 0.77 seconds.
In focus: Anna-Lena Forster (middle) celebrating gold with the German Para-Alpine Ski Team.
(Photo: Christoph Soeder/dpa)
“I know that I’m good at slalom, but I never thought I’d be able to catch up six seconds,” she said: “It was so emotional to still win gold. And so relieving because there was already a lot of pressure and expectations from came on the outside. I’m glad that I already have at least one gold medal in my hands.”
Forster, 26, also struggles with comparison in these games. A German athlete maneuvering her monoski elegantly around gates and poles with the help of two crutch skis in her hands and winning medals? Some who have a name in mind at this point might still be thinking of Anna Schaffelhuber, who won five gold medals in Sochi in 2014, one in each possible race. She ended her career in 2019 and now works as a teacher. She trusts Forster five times gold, she said before the games.
Forster won her first gold medals in 2018
In 2018 both were still at the start together, Forster won her first two gold medals, in slalom and in the super combination, and stepped out of the shadows a bit. This time, for the first time, she is in focus at the Paralympics without Schaffelhuber at her side. The German team is small, only 17 athletes in total, problems in the Paralympic promotion of young people in recent years are a constant issue, especially in alpine skiing, only since 2019 has there been a young national coach. Forster, who also carried the flag at the opening ceremony with biathlete Martin Fleig, is all the more the focus this time. In order to deal with the high level of attention, she said, she also worked with a mental trainer before the Paralympics.
Similar to Schaffelhuber, however, Forster has long since fulfilled the task of not only driving fast, but also promoting more attention and thus more opportunities for disabled sports. There is actually a pointed story from every event in recent years, with which Forster addressed the need to catch up.
Anna Schaffelhuber won five gold medals in Sochi in 2014, but ended her career.
(Photo: Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/dpa)
Before the 2018 Paralympics, she talked about her search for sponsors and how a chocolate manufacturer sent her a bag of sweets, together with the note that they were already socially committed – which indicated that paralympic top-class sport was not perceived appropriately everywhere. At the 2019 World Cup in Slovenia, she addressed the “not very appreciative” organization – there were only four dixi toilets for athletes and spectators. At the World Cup in Lillehammer, which was postponed by a year to 2022 due to the pandemic, she praised the organizer – noting that she had received prize money for a win for the first time in her career.
What sets Forster apart from the competition at the top of the world is its clean technology
There is still a lot to do, she says, but focusing on the sport in her own career is possible. Forster, who was born in Radolfzell on Lake Constance without a right leg and with a shortened left leg, has been monoskiing since she was six. Her parents had been looking for a way to continue skiing with the family. After completing her psychology studies, she has been a “full professional” since the summer. She is employed by customs as part of the German elite sport promotion. And even if the search for sponsors is still not easy, as she said before the Paralympics, she is supported by a number of partners. Gold is of course an argumentation aid.
What sets Forster apart from the relatively large competition at the top of the world, only eight athletes were registered for the super combination, is her clean technique. Falls with the monoski are not uncommon and often thin out the field. At Forster, on the other hand, the ride looks sleek, tight on the bars, so wide gaps aren’t uncommon. In her six-second race to catch up in the slalom, her best discipline, she even gave away a little time in one passage.
Nothing comes close to the importance of her first Paralympic medal from Pyeongchang, she said on Monday. But: “It was already a very important win for me today.” She will start the games twice more, on Friday and Sunday. Incidentally, Anna Schaffelhuber will also be watching. From Wednesday she works as a TV expert for ARD.
