Rescued on slopes « Euro Weekly News

Sir Andy Murray may have conquered Wimbledon and the Olympic Games, but his first-ever skiing holiday proved to be a much tougher challenge.

The former world number one admitted he had to be rescued by snowmobile after getting stuck on the slopes, unable to stop himself from hurtling down the mountain.

Murray, who had never skied before, revealed that his first two days on the slopes were a disaster, struggling to even get off the ski lifts. His wife, Kim, refused to ride with him after a series of embarrassing mishaps, leaving him reliant on strangers to help him disembark.

Andy Murray’s skiing nightmare: Stranded on a Mountain with no way to stop

Speaking on the Sporting Misadventures podcast, Murray recalled how what was meant to be a casual run on a beginner slope turned into a 3km ordeal. He and his brother-in-law had planned to take a different ski lift back up, but by the time they reached it, they were told it had closed for the day.

Realising he had no way back up, the ski lift operator bluntly told him he had no choice but to ski down. There was just one problem—Murray still didn’t know how to stop.

“I had no idea what I was doing. We’d been on a beginner green slope, but after that, it turned into blues and reds. I went down about 500 metres and thought, ‘If I try to turn, I’m going off the side of the mountain.’”

Panicking, the two-time Wimbledon champion resorted to throwing himself onto the ground to stop himself from speeding out of control. He then tried sliding down on his backside, but even that proved difficult. Eventually, he stumbled upon a mountain restaurant, abandoned his skis, and started walking.

Andy Murray’s embarrassing rescue: Ski Patrol mistook him for a drunk tourist

With darkness falling and the slopes turning icy, Murray had to be rescued by a ski patrol skidoo. The rescue team, however, weren’t impressed, assuming he was just another reckless holidaymaker who had ignored safety warnings.

“The guys were snapping at me,” Murray admitted. “They usually have to deal with drunk Brits who get stuck at the end of the day, not idiots like me who can’t ski and thought they could just wing it.”

Despite the humiliating rescue, the three-time Grand Slam winner insists he hasn’t been put off. He eventually got the hang of skiing and even enjoyed himself towards the end of the trip.

“We’re going to go again in April,” he said, proving that even one of Britain’s greatest athletes isn’t afraid to take on a challenge—no matter how disastrous his first attempt might have been.

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