German ski jumpers now have their "flying dinosaur"
At the top at 33: Pius Paschke wins in Engelberg - as the oldest German in the history of the Ski Jumping World Cup. The following day, he confirms the winter fairytale and jumps onto the podium again. The ski jumpers have built up a lot of confidence for the tour in recent weeks.
Pius Paschke didn't let himself get carried away and threw a lavish party at the Engelberg team hotel - lavish by the standards of the quiet veteran, of course. "A round of beer for everyone," announced the newly crowned World Cup winner: "That's all I can manage anyway." After all, the 33-year-old had to emotionally wrap up the fact that he had previously written a sporting Christmas fairytale and, above all, ski jumping history.
"It's all a bit much at the moment. Lots of emotions, lots of confusion," said the man with the pious first name, who was always a bit of a stopgap in the German team, but is suddenly a big name less than two weeks before the start of the Four Hills Tournament: "It's finally paying off." And how: 24 hours after his premiere triumph, Paschke once again jumped onto the podium in third place in Austrian Stefan Kraft's victory.
All smiles after Saturday's victory
His coup on Saturday, when he jumped from sixth place in the second round to his first World Cup victory, was unique: never before has a ski jumper been older on his first success, and Paschke also replaced Jens Weißflog as the oldest German winner. And practically everyone was genuinely happy for the picture-book sportsman.
"Pius," said team-mate Andreas Wellinger, "is simply a great guy." Karl Geiger "wholeheartedly congratulated his teammate. With his stamina, it's more than deserved". And even the ever-cool national coach Stefan Horngacher was touched: "Everyone knows what a fighter Pius is, how he always came back."
Actually, a guy like Paschke is not meant to have a career like his in competitive ski jumping. "I never really thought about quitting. But I was afraid that at some point I would be too old and the system would spit me out," he once said in the podcast "Flugshow".
128 jumps to his first victory
At the age of almost 21, Paschke was still the lead jumper in the World Cup, at an age when Wellinger had already been an Olympic champion for around three years. In addition, Paschke's home for a long time was the Continental Cup, the second league of ski jumping, in which he competed in well over 200 competitions. A tough school, a grind. "But I worked my way up there step by step, learned a lot," he said: "Sometimes I thought, phew, it's a long way to the World Cup. But I was always allowed to do what I enjoyed."
And so he stuck with it, while many of his teammates gave up. And was rewarded late: at the end of 2017, national coach Werner Schuster brought the then 27-year-old into the World Cup team, Paschke stuck with it, successes trickled in: 2020 team vice world champion in ski flying, 2021 team world champion, the first World Cup podium in Kuusamo at the end of November and now, in his 128th jump, his first victory.
As a police officer in his mid-thirties ("I'm not recognized in uniform, but I'm not recognized without it either."), the victory in Engelberg doesn't have to be a lonely one - the legendary flying dinosaur Noriaki Kasai still won the World Cup at the age of 42.
"The Kasai of Kiefersfelden"
And so Paschke is now approaching the tour as he has done everything so far: calmly, step by step, with confidence. "I'll do the same things that are working now," says the "Kasai of Kiefersfelden": "And then we'll see."
And it's not just Paschke, but almost all German ski jumpers who are heading to the tour with a lot of confidence. It starts with the first competition on December 29 in Oberstdorf. The team's unity and consistency are impressive and are also reflected in the numbers: In eight competitions, national coach Horngacher's team achieved a total of ten podium places. Only Kraft has done even better than the DSV trio of Andreas Wellinger, Karl Geiger and Paschke. The 2015 tour champion is ahead in the overall World Cup. He took third place in Engelberg and followed it up with a victory.
"It's always like this: when Stefan Kraft hits a jump really well, it's difficult for everyone," said Horngacher about the exceptional athlete. Nevertheless, the coach is confident. "We still have a week to improve a few things and then we'll start the tour," he said, adding: "We're looking forward to it. We're taking it easy. We're in good shape."
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Pius Paschke's success in ski jumping continues as he secures a third-place finish in a following competition, showcasing his prowess in winter sports like ski jumping.
In preparation for the upcoming Four Hills Tournament, the German ski jumpers exhibit high spirits and confidence, looking forward to competing at the top level, especially after Paschke's exemplary performances in ski jumping.
Source: www.ntv.de
