In March 2000, Hermann clinched his second Crystal Cup with the perfect ideal mark of 2000 points - still a record that only great champions such as Janica Kostelic may break this winter or in future!

His reckless style and his rude manners didn't make him very popular among the other team-mates who had sometimes a hard time dealing with him. Stephan Eberharter, one of his greatest rivals within the team and on the course, refused to shake his hand in March 2001 while both were posing for the photographers the day before the Are downhill, decisive for the specialty World Cup standings. Maier clinched the title after a last success - beating Eberharter by only a few hundredths.

In the meantime, Eberharter also established himself as one of the greatest World Cup champions last winter - winning ten races as well as three Olympic medals in Salt Lake City. With a total of ten victories in downhill from December 2001 to January 2003, Stephan reached the level of former dominators as Franz Klammer, the legendary 1976 Olympic Champion in Innsbruck.

After suffering for years in Maier's shadow - finishing a dozen times in second place behind him - the 33-year-old Tyrolian is much more relaxed now. Publicly, he is saluting Hermann's return after his long period of struggling and doubts. "I can imagine how he feels now - he must be so happy to be again a racer after being a patient" he said in Bormio after winning his sixth race of the season.

"It's really hard to be injured when you're an athlete because you miss the competition so much. I went through the same situation in the mid 1990's! It's very frustrating and you can't wait to be back".

"I don't think about dueling with him - I have other goals. For the moment, Hermann will mostly try to achieve a good race and to stay healthy".

In Adelboden where hundredths of reporters and photographers merged on Monday morning to attend the 45 minute-long course inspection by Hermann Maier on the difficult racing slope, it was also possible to measure the difference between the former Olympic Champions and his pals. Maier remains a superstar while they are "just" great champions - and his two press conference created great interest.

The journalists were positively surprised by Maier's softer behavior and his smooth approach. While it's obvious that he will battle hard to re-conquer his throne, Hermann set himself lower goals in the near future.

"It's already a great victory for me to be back here as a racer" he said with conviction. "To qualify for the second run would be superb - but just to race again is wonderful. I'm still missing a lot of snow training and I have not raced for a long time now".

"This slope is quite icy and very demanding. Normally I like it this way, but it may be tough for me. I'm happy not to feel any pain at my leg and I'm really excited to be here. Adelboden has always been a great place for me and I like the people here".

In the race, Maier showed obvious signs of rust. He finished the first run .05 seconds away from qualifying for the final run. Still, Maier was pleased to be on course again. He was clearly gratified by the reaction of his fellow competitors, many of whom waited at the bottom of the run to applaud his return.

"It's fun to meet again so many people who were part of my life. It's also good to feel that people seems happy to see me again. Many were skeptical about my chances to return and I hope to prove them that they are wrong".

"I fought very hard for months to prepare this comeback but I'm myself a little surprised that I could make it here. My health improved a lot in the past weeks and I was so glad when I found out that I don't feel any pain anymore. We decided on Sunday morning after a last test in Reiteralm that I felt strong enough for a return here. It's a long quest which finally ends."

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— MountainZone.com staff