Bode Miller, American legend

From Next magazine issue 3/2004. Text by Harri Lindfors

Extroverted and easy-going, Bode Miller from the United States has stood on the winners' podium of the White Circus many times in recent years and has won the hearts of alpine skiing fans everywhere. Miller's career will enter a new phase next season, when he goes to the starting gate wearing Atomic skis, boots and bindings for the first time.

All or nothing! Bode Miller always skis fast and at the very edge of the risk envelope. When Miller climbs onto the victor's podium, the winning margin is often exceptionally wide. And if his race doesn't end in glory, he's often left to pick himself and his equipment out of the snow. Because of his aggressive style, Bode Miller eats snow just as often as he lifts trophies.

Easy-going, respectful of his rivals, extroverted, successful and wild are all adjectives that have been used to describe Bode Miller. He is an international star and, most importantly for alpine skiing, he is an American. Bode Miller has been arousing interest in the Alpine World Cup back in his homeland for a long time. But it is not just in the States that he is held in great esteem; his performances and personality have won the hearts of many Europeans as well. The Austrians in particular have more or less adopted Miller as a native son; he actually lives in the Tyrolean capital of Innsbruck during the winter. At the end of last season Bode Miller signed a two-year agreement with Atomic. Rumour has it that a few other brands offered Miller more lucrative deals, but Atomic's equipment was the decisive factor in Miller's decision.

"I'm confident that I'll get all the support necessary to win in each discipline," says Miller.

American ace

Bode Miller has had more success in the Alpine Ski World Cup than any other American since the Mahre brothers back in the 1980s. His very first World Cup race was a sensation: in December 1997 Miller achieved a brilliant 11th place finish in the Giant Slalom at Park City. That performance raised more than a few eyebrows, especially as his start number was 69.

After his lightening start, the young American had to wait a while for further success. In fact, it was not until the turn of the Millennium that Miller really showed his full potential. The seventeenth of December 2000 was something of a milestone in the history of alpine skiing, because on that day Bode Miller won bronze at Val d'Isère in the World Cup Giant Slalom, ending an American drought that had lasted almost twenty years. Miller's real breakthrough came in 2002, when he won Olympic silver medals in the Giant Slalom and Alpine Combined at the Salt Lake City games in his own country.

In winter 2003 Bode Miller pulled out all the stops. At the end of the World Cup season he came first in the Alpine Combined and runner up in the Giant Slalom. From the World Championships in St. Moritz he brought back souvenirs in the form of gold medals in the Giant Slalom and Alpine Combined and a silver medal in the Super-G. And last season went almost perfectly: World Cup victories in the Giant Slalom and Alpine Combined and an admirable fifth place in the Slalom.

Not the best, but the fastest

To the onlooker Bode Miller's skiing technique is ungainly if not downright ugly. He arms flail about wildly, his poles touch the snow almost randomly, and his weight often hangs a long way behind the tails of his skis. His long limbs merely exaggerate the ungainliness of his movements. Bode's skiing style seems to defy the laws of physics - or at least the instructions of all coaches.

Alpine skiers are accustomed to the idea that when the skiing style is good, speed and results follow from it. Bode Miller sees things differently: speed first, then technique. No one would deny that his technique is original . Yet rather than focusing on his flailing arms, take a close look at Miller's footwork. If you watch Bode ski from the knees on down, you can only admire the spectacle. He has an exceptionally clean and carving turn, into which he can add more speed thanks to his seemingly balanced posture. Miller's competition runs may not be pretty to watch, but you don't get points for style in alpine racing. Only the ticking clock decides who will be victorious.

Bode Miller's skiing style is extremely aggressive because he skis very tight lines. But as has been noted in many races, it is also a very risky style. Now and then his tight lines lead to lateness and then to crashes, although Miller is able to correct his mistakes better than most. Failing to finish has almost become Miller's trademark. But when he does win, the margin of victory can be embarrassingly wide. Bode Miller's style has brought a lot of excitement and anticipation to alpine racing: How fast will Miller ski today? Will he finish the course?

American legend

It is no surprise that the Americans have made a legend out of the success of their golden boy. And Bode Miller's life certainly does have all the ingredients of good story. He grew up on the East Coast in the care of his hippie parents. The Millers' home had no electricity or running water. Little Bode's early schooling was provided at home by his mother. Even as a child, Miller was interested in all kinds of sport and was very good at them. Apart from skiing, his favourite sports were soccer and tennis.

Bode Miller is an exceptionally gifted sportsman who would rather play than practice. Certainly self-doubt is not one of his character traits. He will look you straight in the eye and claim quite confidently that he could have been a soccer player to rival Ronaldo or a tennis player somewhere near the top of the ATP rankings if he had chosen one of those sports rather than alpine skiing.

Bode Miller has one manifest and quintessentially American virtue: he never gives up. Even if Miller goes way off line at full speed during a competition run, he will always try to finish the course. That's exactly what happened in the Slalom at the Salt Lake City Olympics, and the home crowd certainly showed their appreciation for his dogged determination. The next skier, who has to wait at start gate for longer than normal, is probably less enthusiastic about Bode's refusal to give up.

Miller's success, character and nationality have boosted his market value. His American citizenship is a valuable asset because the United States is one the biggest markets for skiing equipment. No fewer than six million pairs of alpine skis are sold in the country each year.

Pair of fighters

Last winter Bode Miller fought a tough battle with Kalle Palander for World Cup supremacy. The fate of the Giant Slalom was not decided until the almost tragicomical World Cup finals at Sestriere in Italy. Next winter it will be even more interesting to see the pair do battle, as both will be using the same brand of skis, boots and bindings.

Kalle Palander is relaxed about his rival becoming a team mate: "Now Bode will be even more dangerous than before, but otherwise his joining Atomic doesn't affect me at all. We both have our own arrangements, and for the last two years everything has gone extremely well with the factory as far as I'm concerned. I'm sure we'll both be treated equally well. When racing, of course, we'll be competing against each other just as fiercely as last season."

Palander and Miller have a lot in common: both are fast, successful, positive, talkative and relaxed about their popularity with the public. They are both extremely competitive, and are both very focused and calm at the start gate. Bode Miller in particular appears to be a man with no pre-race nerves at all. "At first I too thought that Bode didn't experience any pre-race jitters. But last season I noticed that he's human too; he feels the pressure at the start gate just like everyone else," says Palander with a grin.

Kalle's jibe could even be interpreted as a kind of challenge. Bode Miller will certainly get an extra boost from his new equipment, but Palander obviously has no intention of giving an inch. Next season promises to be an exciting one: two strong personalities and super-fast skiers will battle it out for World Cup supremacy with equally good equipment. The stage is set; let battle commence!

Bode Miller

Date and place of birth: 12.10.1977, Easton, New Hampshire, USA
Height: 187 cm
Weight: 95 kg
Best achievements:
Season 2003-2004: World Cup Overall 4th, Giant Slalom 1st, Alpine Combined 1st, Slalom 5th.
Season 2002-2003: World Championship gold medals in the Giant Slalom and Combined, silver in the Super-G, World Cup Overall 2nd, Combined 1st, Giant Slalom 2nd.
Season 2001-2002: Olympic silver medals in the Giant Slalom and Combined; World Cup Overall 4th, Slalom 2nd, Combined 4th, Giant Slalom 7th.
Season 2000-2001:first World Cup medal; bronze in the Giant Slalom at Val d'Isère