For once, the German ski jumpers do not start the tour as top favorites. Is this exactly where the great opportunity lies?
The German ski jumpers were quickly able to get used to their unusual role as “outsider favorites”. On the eve of the 74th Four Hills Tournament, the DSV Eagles, led by hopeful Philipp Raimund, were celebrated by fans in Oberstdorf in high spirits – the relaxed atmosphere at the team presentation in the middle of the Allgäu winter landscape was the starting signal for a tour that does not (yet) have the best prospects for the German team.
“Actually,” national coach Stefan Horngacher emphasized meaningfully at the opening press conference in the team hotel in Fischen, “we can only win.” Unlike in previous years, when Karl Geiger, Andreas Wellinger and Pius Paschke were considered hot contenders for the title, the DSV team starts the first competition in Oberstdorf on Monday (4.30 p.m./ARD and Eurosport) without too many expectations – and senses its chance right there.
DSV eagles can “jump right to the front”
“That’s good for us. A lot has always been expected of us in recent years,” said Horngacher, who obviously enjoyed the role of the hunter. The hunted this time are not Wellinger or Paschke, but the Slovenian high-flyer Domen Prevc or the three-time tour winner Ryoyu Kobayashi from Japan. And behind that? Last but not least, Raimund and Felix Hoffmann are waiting for their chance.
“Philipp and Felix have shown,” said Horngacher, “that they can jump to the top.” Both landed on the podium several times this winter and are therefore now in the German spotlight on the tour. Raimund from Oberstdorf in particular can have legitimate hopes of a top result before the start in front of his home crowd due to his consistency.
“I’m happy that I can start the tour in this privileged situation. I’m actually jumping quite nicely at the moment,” said the 25-year-old, as usual, calmly. No trace of great nervousness. “I’m sure a few thoughts come up from time to time, that’s completely normal,” said Raimund: “But I completely ignored social media. My family is good at it. I had a good Christmas and can go on tour with a smile.”
“We know what we can do”
Horngacher also has a lot of confidence in his protégé. “When it counts,” Raimund “was always there,” praised the Austrian. Where could this quality pay off better than on tour? It was not for nothing that even the top favorite Prevc curbed the euphoria. The 26-year-old series winner said he knew “how quickly things can turn into the opposite. Last year, Pius Paschke was so strong at the beginning of the season – then everything turned around completely for him.”
Like Prevc, Paschke went into the tour with five wins this season, where he came sixth overall – a year later, even that hardly seems feasible for the 35-year-old. The former tour runners-up Wellinger and Geiger even dropped out of the World Cup after extremely poor performances. Top placements would therefore be like a miracle. So: Enter Raimund. Enter Hoffmann.
Because no matter how clearly the role of favorite may be: “We certainly don’t go and say we have no chance,” emphasized Horngacher: “We know what we can do.”