Aamodt today: Only kidding!

Kjetil Andre Aamodt, now aged 32, confessed today that he was only kidding
when he told our national media yesterday that he intended to quit
international ski racing as soon as his younger team mates started winning,
particularly Aksel Lund Svindal. Today he said that his statement yesterday
was only intended as a joke, and that he of course intended to go on at
least until the 2006 Turin/Torino Olympic Winter Games, and maybe even
longer, including the 2007 FIS World Championships. Well, I guess that we
all really just will have to wait and see. But his good (team) mate Lasse
Kjus, who is also a thirtysomething, has been talking seriously about
quitting for a long time now, for a variety of reasons: lack of motivation,
some (luckily to us more "ordinary" people minor) health problems, growing
involvement in business, etc. etc. He will finish this upcoming season, but
I seriousley doubt that he will continue until Italy 2006. I must admit that
when I see them being interwieved on TV, Aamodt both looks and sounds much
more motivated and keen to start racing than the more quiet and laid-back
Lasse Kjus. But, well, of course looks can often be
misleading.................. Maybe Kjus has an ace up his sleeve, and just
wants to deceive us all before the season starts, who knows.