Cortina d'Ampezzo (Italy) (AFP)

"To leave here with two gold medals is just incredible," savored Mathieu Faivre, surprising giant world champion Friday three days after a parallel title.

QUESTION: Tell us about your two rounds of the day ...

ANSWER: "On the first, I didn't feel right. But I tried to believe it until the end without asking myself any questions. I know that in training I ski pretty fast. The first run went well, 4th, so I had nothing to lose on second. On second, it was complicated. We started with the sun falling, the track that had moved, changing conditions between the start, the middle and the finish where it was very hot. I didn't feel extremely well, there were times when I was on the verge of going out but each time it passed. I tried to push so hard as possible until arrival. "

Q: What does this giant title represent, the first for a Frenchman since Jean-Claude Killy in 1968?

A: "I came here as a priority for the giant. To come away with the most beautiful medals, it's just an incredible feeling. It's been 53 years since there was a world champion of giant, c he is my discipline, I do almost nothing but that, so it represents a lot of things. And Killy is still the benchmark in alpine skiing, with Alexis (Pinturault) who has an incredible track record. Enter my name after him at awards are heavy with meaning. "

Q: Is your title a surprise?

A: "Of course. Since the start of the season I have never been in the game, I have never played with the best, not even on one round. That's why to start again from here with two gold medals, it's just incredible. You have to believe that they are right people who say that things happen when you least expect them (...) When I understand that I win, all the difficult moments come back to the surface. Since we changed the rule (of equipment), I had more difficulty adapting. It was complicated, sometimes wearing out, to re-mobilize. But it's Also that is the life of everyone, not that of the athletes. You just have to manage to stay the course. There are days like that which reward the fact of never having given up. "

Interview in mixed zone

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