Ski flying for the first time in the program: Ski jumping coach Maximilian Mechler: “The pulse is racing”

From the slumber to the fast lane: After the first ski queen was crowned on the large hill last season, from this season onwards, female ski jumpers are also allowed to go ski flying on the Monsterbakken. The sports show spoke with national coach Maximilian Mechler about anticipation, fears, equality, goals and the first year as head coach of the ski jumpers.

The ski jumping season begins with a World Cup competition on mats in green Wisla. Is there still anticipation?

Maximilian Mechler: “Of course. Before nothing works, we prefer to jump on mats. We’re used to that through summer and autumn anyway. If you don’t know it otherwise, it might look strange when you land on green mats, but it’s not for us problem and normal.”

Due to climate change, mat jumping could become the norm. Doesn’t the winter sports flair get lost then?

“When there is not enough snow or the production is too expensive, mats are an ideal alternative. We look forward to every competition, whether on mats or in the snow.“

You are starting your second season as national coach. How did the preparation go and did you do anything differently than last year?

“Basically, we didn’t do anything differently. We tried to continue on the path we took last year. That means a lot of athletic training, a lot of jumps and we also practiced flying.”

For the first time, women are allowed to ski fly. Another step on the way in the fight for “level playing field” – how happy is that?

“On the one hand, you’re happy, but on the other hand, it’s also a big challenge. Fear doesn’t fly with you, but your pulse is always high when you ski fly. We fought for it for a long time and the Norwegians were the driving force. Now the time has come. Some people is more happy, others less. With us, Katha (Katharina Althaus/Editor’s note) is the jumper with whom the anticipation is the greatest.”

In Vikersund only the women who are currently in the top 15 in the World Cup will compete. Do you think this decision is right?

“There was a lot of discussion about it. In my opinion, we have found a good solution.”

There were also critical voices. Gregor Schlierenzauer, for example, said ski jumping was too dangerous for women. Do you share this opinion?

“More dangerous – I don’t know. Ski flying involves a risk, just like ski jumping in general. It’s a few kilometers an hour more that you start with. Ski flying also depends on your form. It’s similar for men. The who don’t go that way don’t go ski flying either. Actually, it would be good if the topic wasn’t too high. We should just give it a try.”

The start of the season is imminent. Did everything go smoothly in the preparation?

“Everything went very well. We always had small injuries. Selina was therefore not able to fully participate in the summer GP, Pauline was plagued by back problems. Overall, we were able to implement what we had planned.”

When do you speak of a successful season?

“The main goal is a medal at the World Championships. I also hope that everyone in the team can get a little closer to the top of the world. Last year we took a step forward overall with the team. That will remain our goal this season. “

At the end of the Summer Grand Prix in Klingenthal, four jumpers from the DSV team ended up in the top 15, Selina Freitag even made it onto the podium. It runs…

“Yes, that was very gratifying, but we won’t be able to do it every week in the World Cup. Our goal must be to achieve that as often as possible.”

What are you most looking forward to?

“There are a few highlights. With Wisla, the first is just around the corner. I would be happiest if we could complete the season with all the jumping events. Of course, in addition to the World Championships, the highlights are the home World Cups in Neustadt and Willingen together with the men .“

You started last season as the women’s national coach. When you look in the rearview mirror, what do you see?

“An extremely positive first season. Working with the women is fun. Katha jumped very well and almost always ended up on the podium. The others in the team came closer, but couldn’t show everything yet. Olympia was very annoying with the disqualification , but the positive clearly outweighs the negative.”

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