Sawt Falasteen - 'Spirited on the slope': The downhill rise of Petra Vlhova

Her father and manager, Igor Vlha, who ran a canteen at the Jasna resort where Vlhova made her first outings on the slopes, remembers that she learned skiing "way before she could talk".

"We were not crazy about skiing. She learned to ski on her own, under the supervision of her older brother Boris," he told AFP.

She was just three years old at the time and the family lived near Liptovsky Mikulas, a picturesque town in northern Slovakia.

Skiing was not her only passion -- she also liked climbing trees, building snow forts and playing football and ice hockey.

She soon realised she would need to concentrate on skiing to improve.

Her first coach, Jan Garaj, remembers her as "spirited on the slope".

"I remember her very first competition when she set off, quickly passed the first gate, then the second, and raced down fearlessly without making any turns.

"After crossing the finish line, she raised her arms and cried, lisping: 'I'm first!'," Garaj told AFP.

Since then, Vlhova has had a meteoric career and expectations are high for the Beijing Winter Olympics.

In 2021, she won the World Cup overall title -- the first Slovak skier to do.

The 26-year-old specialises in technical events such as the slalom and giant slalom.

She has six World Championships medals to her name but, so far, has drawn a blank at the Olympics despite taking part in both the 2014 and 2018 Games.

- Screwdriver ritual -

As she was growing up, Garaj always carried a screwdriver in his ski boots to tighten a loose ski binding now and then. It was how Petra and her first coach established a ritual.

"Before her races, we took turns throwing the screwdriver into the snow with the handle end up. She loved the ritual, and stuck to it for years," Garaj said.

From the age of 10 to 15, she trained in the northern city of Martin, coached by Rastislav Mazgut, who called her "open and straightforward."

"If she did not like something during training, she would immediately confront me with it. She only cared about becoming the best," he told AFP.

Mazgut revealed that as a teenager, Petra hated running but understood that it was necessary to stay in shape.

When it came to ski practice, however, she never complained.

"While many youngsters were pushed into skiing by their parents, Petra loved to ski and was keen on learning more," Mazgut said.

- Sibling bond -

Petra grew up close to her brother Boris and his friends, their summers filled with endless shenanigans and their winters spent skiing.

"We had a great childhood, we always got along well. We would play soccer or ride motorbikes together," Boris told AFP.

"I still look after her," he added, saying he deals with her finances and also serves as a driver and cook for the team.

Petra always has the same thing for breakfast, he said -- rolled oats, fruit, plain yogurt with peanut butter -- while she enjoys pasta for lunch and the occasional steak for dinner.

She is an avid motorbike fan and still finds the time to ride her off-road racing bike through the woods in the off-season.

Her brother is always close at hand when she is competing.

"In the seconds before setting off, she is concentrated 100 percent," he said.

"It's hard to describe but it's like she's in a trance. She can ski the track blindfolded."

T.Samara--SF-PST