72nd Four Hills Tournament - "Getting the ball rolling": Tour under the sign of rivalry
Far away from the hustle and bustle of Oberstdorf, the German ski jumpers felt right at home. Andreas Wellinger & Co. enjoyed the peace and quiet in the idyllic spa hotel in Fischen before the big Four Hills Tournament duel with Austria and top favorite Stefan Kraft. The 72nd edition of the ski jumping spectacle is all about the duel between the two hosts. "Of course it's nice that we have this rivalry. That's what makes the tour. It's also what makes the teams. Without the duel, it would be a bit boring," said Wellinger on Wednesday.
22 agonizing sporting years of waiting are to end this winter when the trio of Wellinger, Karl Geiger and Pius Paschke open the hunt for the golden eagle for the overall winner in Oberstdorf on Friday (17:15/ARD and Eurosport). "I'm really looking forward to it. I hope that we get the ball rolling tomorrow," announced Wellinger. The consistently sunny weather in the Allgäu was exemplary for the brilliant German prospects.
Change of hotel a "very good move"
A change of hotel should also help. For the first time, the German Ski Association (DSV) team is no longer staying in the Oberstdorf district of Tiefenbach, but in Fischen. This has "certainly nothing" to do with superstition, said national coach Stefan Horngacher. "It just makes sense when you spend 99 percent of your training days here that we also live here during the tour. The boys know their way around, everyone knows exactly where to get everything. It's a logical consequence. That was a very good move," said Horngacher ahead of the big task.
Like Peter Prevc (2016), Kamil Stoch (2018) or Ryoyu Kobayashi (2019), the 30-year-old Kraft could be the one super athlete to spoil the German ski jumpers' triumph at the Tournament despite great team unity. Olympic champion Wellinger was full of praise for Kraft even before the start.
"You have to beat this man"
"Krafti is the best ski jumper of the last ten years. He has been competing at a very high level for an extremely long time. He has a jumping style that is less susceptible to the wind conditions and the size of the hill," the 28-year-old Bavarian told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper (Wednesday). Wellinger also emphasized that Kraft is lighter and smaller than himself and his teammate Geiger. This could be an advantage. "Four wins to start with: you have to beat this man first if you want to be at the top of the tour," said Wellinger.
Kraft was the last Austrian to win the overall tour ranking on January 6, 2015. The Germans have often been on the podium since then, but have been waiting for their big coup since 2002. When Sven Hannawald took his fourth consecutive individual victory back then, the Euro had been introduced in Germany for less than a week. Since then, the ski jumpers have been chasing the longed-for triumph on the well-known facilities in Oberstdorf, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Innsbruck and Bischofshofen without success.
Austrians live in Austria
Over 25,000 spectators are expected directly in Oberstdorf. The starting position is ideal for a direct duel between Austrians and Germans. But the two head coaches warn. "You can't say it's just Austria versus Germany or just Kraft versus Geiger and Wellinger. There are already some people there who can jump very well," said Austria's coach Andreas Widhölzl. His team is staying in Austria before the start, in Kleinwalsertal right next to Oberstdorf.
Horngacher, who is familiar with triumphs at the event from his time in Poland, has a similar view. "We're going into the Four Hills Tournament as normal. We don't make a big circus of it. It's important to me: I still see potential for development in jumping. The jumps aren't yet on a string like Stefan Kraft's at the start of the season, for example," said Horngacher. That is now the goal. First of all, it is important to get through the first qualification on Thursday (4.30 pm) without any damage.
Information on the Four Hills Tournament Results Four Hills Tournament The overall World Cup standings Fis profile Stefan Kraft Fis profile Andreas Wellinger Fis profile Karl Geiger
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Source: www.stern.de
