Alpine skiing-COVID rules play spoilsport for Kilde with girlfriend Shiffrin

YANQING, China, Feb 3 (Reuters) – Life within the Olympic bubble is a little bit of a tease, Norwegian alpine skier Aleksander Aamodt Kilde mentioned on Thursday, as a result of COVID-19 restrictions are retaining him other than his girlfriend, American skier Mikaela Shiffrin.

Kilde, who leads the World Cup standings in downhill and Tremendous-G, is favorite for gold within the males’s pace occasions, whereas twice Olympic gold medallist Shiffrin is a high contender within the ladies’s technical occasions of slalom and large slalom.

Kilde and Shiffrin began relationship final yr whereas he was making his approach again from a devastating knee damage and he or she was coping with the demise of her father.

A lot of their time collectively has been spent aside, competing on their respective circuits and supporting one another from afar over social media.

Beijing, it seems, just isn’t that totally different.

“All people mentioned we might spend a lot time collectively,” Kilde mentioned after the primary official males’s downhill follow at Yanqing Alpine Centre.

“It is good to have her however it’s tougher, as a result of with COVID and the restrictions, it’s important to be actually cautious.

“It is a tease, sort of. You see her, however you’ll be able to’t actually contact her, you’ll be able to’t actually be along with her that a lot, however it’s very nice to have her right here.

The 2 have dinner collectively repeatedly within the athletes’ village however, other than that, life is sort of the identical as when they’re competing on tour — often at totally different venues.

“We’re retaining the identical routines as at all times, I suppose … FaceTiming, speaking on the telephone,” Kilde added. “We’re attempting to remain a little bit bit cautious as a result of if we get COVID the implications are too huge.

“We speak basically how issues are feeling, experiences, we speak normal issues about snowboarding, not likely an excessive amount of technical, however she sends me movies and we attempt to be taught from one another a little bit bit and that is cool.

“I’ve quite a bit to be taught from her, that is for positive.”

Reporting by Simon Jennings; Modifying by Ken Ferris

Our Requirements: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.