ONE LEG IS FASTER THAN TWO RIGHT?

It's a question Michael hears all the time. As he says 'You cut body parts off, you should go faster.' Well, it doesn't work like that.

Balance is a big issue for all speed skiers and especially for Michael. At that speed even a small bump can send you flying so getting in a good strong position is important and staying there is critical.

With just one ski, Michael's weight is distributed over a width of just 6cm as opposed to those with two skis who have about 50cm to work with. Try it yourself. How well do you balance in a tuck position on one leg as opposed to two? How much strength do you need in that one leg to hold you there?

So, on one ski, Michale is far less stable and it takes a lot more luck and concentration to maintain the crouch position. Small breaks in his tuck which would mean a small correction for a 'double-planker' often mean Michael has to break his tuck. And what happens then? He slows down.

Also, the fastest skiers in the world drop their chest and even their arms and shoulders between their knees. Michael's one leg must be as close as possible to the centre of his body to maintain balance which means he physically can't get his chest between his knees (quite aside from teh fact that he doesn't actually have 'knees').

The lower you go, the more aerodynamic your body is and the faster you go. Simple physics.

And that's why cutting off your leg will NEVER make you the fastest skier in the world.