At the age of 18, Tristan Sommerfeldt already represented the DSV in the Nordic Combined World Cup. The German youngster also proved his talent at the Nordic Junior World Championships. He reports on his successes in a column for sport.de.
Vancouver – a word that makes tourist hearts beat faster. Canada’s third-largest city after Montreal and Toronto is located on the west coast of Canada in British Columbia in a unique location by the sea. The foothills of the North Shore Mountains begin not far away, so that vacationers can enjoy sea and mountains in equal measure.
Vancouver – a word that also makes the hearts of sports enthusiasts beat faster, as the city hosted the 21st Olympic Winter Games with a venue in Whistler, where the Nordic Junior World Championships took place for me, my third in a row.
After I had been given a personal right to start in all World Cup races this season through my bronze medal in the individual at the last Junior World Championships, my biggest goal was of course to get back on the podium in the individual in order to continue to maintain this right to start.
The starts in the World Cup have brought me further. After an initial approach to the German team, the intensity of the competitions, the organization and the atmosphere at World Cup events, I have now developed a good routine and developed from start to start on the cross-country ski run and on the hills. Having the best in the world in front of you and competing against them is extremely helpful. I see a lot from the experienced teammates and also from the competitors from abroad.
Therefore, the most important goal for Vancouver-Whistler was defined and it was time to implement it. I got along very well with the ski jump and the route and it went better than I had hoped. The result was three medals and each medal has its own story and its own value for me.
Gold in the team: that was an outstanding team effort and celebrating in a team is always something special; Another remarkable team performance was the silver medal in the mixed team, in which we were allowed to compete with our strong women from the World Cup, Natalie Armbruster and Cindy Haasch. Yes, and then of course there was the individual competition, which I was also able to complete with silver.
Vice Junior World Champion! – the main goal was achieved, the right to start in the World Cup was still secured!
After the intense competition, I not only had precious metal in my luggage when I landed in Germany, but also a serious flu infection, which was made worse by the jet lag and forced me to go to bed.
The worst seems to be over now – thanks to the maternal medical care – so that the focus is on the next tasks: during the Nordic World Ski Championships I will probably take part in a Norwegian COC competition, and then the World Cups in Oslo again and contest in Lahti.
Kind regards
Tristan