Four Hills Tournament: Garmisch and an open ÖSV bill

The 26-year-old from Salzburg has to iron out two “carvers”. On the one hand, Kraft wants to rehabilitate himself for his two most recent appearances on New Year’s Day, on the other hand, the double world champion of 2017 wants to show that he can put a perfect telemark in the snow. A shaky jump had cost the current World Cup runner-up a podium finish at the start of the tour in Oberstdorf. Even two days after jumping on the Schattenberg ski jump, Kraft still worried about what he defined as “Saulandung”.

Instead of being the first pursuer of the Japanese Ryoyu Kobayashi, who clearly kept the competition in Oberstdorf in their place, Kraft is 13.9 points behind the World Cup defending champion in the New Year’s competition. The Salzburger told the APA that the deficit should be made up: “If Kobayashi makes mistakes. And hopefully he will. But missiles have to pass by themselves. I will wait patiently for it. “

Remain calm and “do things”

Lack of patience was, according to Kraft, also mainly responsible for the fact that the Salzburg player had a sporty belly mark during the first two seasons of the year. Both in 2018 and 2019, Kraft missed the qualification for the second round on the successor to the original Olympic bakken from 1936. He knows the feeling of jumping well in Garmisch: 2017 was strength on New Year’s Day third.

“I still have a bill open in Garmisch,” said Kraft in the run-up to the first jump in 2020. The experience of the past two years should now help to make things go better this year. “I think I learned from it. I was too strict with myself in Garmisch recently, just wanted too much. I have lost my real strength: that I stay calm and do my thing. ”

Last victory in 2014

But Garmisch-Partenkirchen has not been worth a trip in the past two years not only for strength, also for the other Austrian jumpers. In 2018 Gregor Schlierenzauer was the best Austrian in 19th place, in 2019 Daniel Huber saved the red-white-red eagles with a 15th place from a complete crash. In the latest edition, in addition to Salzburg, only Manuel Fettner, who had since stepped down, made it into the decision as 28th.

The last Austrian winner in Garmisch-Partenkirchen was six years ago. At that time, the ÖSV jumpers took first and second place: On January 1, 2014, the sensationalist Thomas Diethart prevailed over Thomas Morgenstern on the way to overall victory. For a long time, the Austrian eagles on the Olympic ski jump felt very comfortable. From 2008 to 2014, the winner came five times from Austria in seven competitions on New Year’s Day. The winner was called Schlierenzauer three times. Only the German Jens Weißflog won four times in Garmisch.

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