During the first training session for the downhill classic on the Saslong, the speed aces concentrated on getting a feel for the course - even though it is clear that the conditions during the race will be different. We have collected the comments of some of the atheltes after the training session.

Mattia Casse (ITA | 1st place): “The Saslong is simply a beautiful slope. It's great fun to ski here – I particularly like the many jumps. There was still some snow on the course today, but I'm confident that this won't be a problem by the weekend. I have set myself some ambitious goals for the races: my aim is quite clearly to stay at the front. The competition is very strong again this year, but if you want to win, you have to compete with everyone.”

Romed Baumann (GER | 3rd place): “The first training run went quite well for me. I used the training primarily to get used to the conditions – in Europe the snow is different from that in North America. In any case, the slope is in fantastic condition: as usual, it was soft during the first training session, but still perfectly prepared. There are always a lot of favorites here in Val Gardena/Gröden: in addition to the Americans like Bryce Bennett, Marco Odermatt and Dominik Paris are also among the hot favorites. To be at the front, you have to be on the limit from top to bottom. My goal is to improve my starting number with a good result.”

Vincent Kriechmayr (AUT | 24th place): “The track is in good condition, even if it is still soft and therefore a bit slow. In any case, the training was a good opportunity to get to know the course, where I had some strong sections. There were still some minor problems at Ciaslat that I would like to fix by the race. On Friday and Saturday, I want to show my best skiing – a good result is of course the goal.”

Florian Schieder (Kastelruth/ITA | 31st place): “The training went quite well. The course will certainly change before the race, and the weather could also play a decisive role. We'll see how the conditions develop.”

Bryce Bennett (USA | last year's winner of the downhill sprint, 34th place): ”The slope is already in good condition. It still needs a little time for the surface to harden, but personally I can't complain and am very satisfied with the conditions. On the Saslong, you need good skis and a little luck to keep up with the best. I always enjoy racing here - let's see what's in it for me this year.”

Dominik Paris (Ulten/ITA | last year's winner of the downhill classic, 41st place): “The training did not go as hoped, I didn't have a good feeling and it just didn't work out. I really hope that I will do better on the slope in the next training session. The weather is likely to continue to have a significant impact on the slope conditions until the weekend – so let's see how it develops.”