Speed, precision and the will to win: These attributes boost British slalom ace Dave Ryding and the car racers Kelvin van der Linde and Ricardo Feller of the DTM team Abt Sportsline. The Destination of Gurgl provides support in achieving new successes. Recently, the cooperation with the athletes was extended at the athletes' meeting in Gurgl, Ötztal.
At the end of the ski season and before the start of the German Touring Car Championship (DTM) in May, top athletes met at the Diamond of the Alps. The first British World Cup race winner, Dave Ryding, is looking forward to competing under Gurgl's patronage again next season. "By now Gurgl is my second home and I am very proud to represent the destination," states the British slalom star. After his legendary triumph at the Kitzbühel Slalom in 2022, the Englishman's fan base has expanded significantly. In 2023, he also succeeded on the prestigious Ganslernhang slope and made it onto the podium with second place. Of course, Ryding intends to continue fulfilling his role as the "draft horse" in the British team: "I am highly motivated for the next season and hope that my teammates will also succeed in taking the next step."
Home of motor sports
Gurgl and Abt Sportsline have been working together for many years. Reason enough to bring the DTM racing team together with the new sports director Martin Tomczyk and the two racing drivers Kelvin van der Linde (South Africa) and Ricardo Harrer (Switzerland) to Gurgl, Ötztal. The Top Mountain Crosspoint in Hochgurgl was a perfectly matching place for the meeting of ski and motorsport athletes. Here, host Attila Scheiber presented the highlights of the Motorcycle Experience World to the athletes, Europe's highest motorcycle museum covering 4500 m2 with 500 historic motorcycles, special automobiles, interactive attractions and regularly changing special exhibitions. Both Ryding and the two DTM pilots were fascinated by the huge range of historic horsepower gems. The setting was used at the same time to seal the destination's contract extension with DTM Abt and skier Dave Ryding.
Role reversal
The three athletes also used their stay in Gurgl to present their disciplines to the others. For example, Dave Ryding was allowed to take a seat in the driving simulator and experience a virtual test drive on the ABT Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II. In return, the British ski ace invited the two car racers to the slopes of Gurgl for a day of skiing. "It was a great experience. Dave is a super likeable guy with a lot of passion and we noticed many similarities between our sports,” says South African Kelvin van der Linde, who has only recently taken up skiing. Ricardo Feller’s assessment is similar: “It was interesting to see how Dave speeded down the slope. I definitely can't keep up with that."
