Philipp Raimund shone at the Four Hills Tournament two years ago, celebrated his first World Cup podium last year and was hyped, but his big breakthrough has not yet come about.
When Pius Paschke jumped for a podium place in the opening competition of the 73rd Four Hills Tournament, Philipp Raimund, long since changed, was excited in the run-out. The 24-year-old completely botched his jump in Oberstdorf and was eliminated in 40th place after the first round.
The performance in his living room matched the entire season of the Allgäu native, who not long ago was considered a great hope in German ski jumping. But Raimund is currently far from top performance. 14th place in Wisla is the best placement of the season. Otherwise, Raimund ranked between 20th and 30th. The strong jumper has already missed the final five times. That only happened to him three times last season.
Sports show winter sports, December 28th, 2024 6:13 p.m
At the Four Hills Tournament suddenly in the spotlight
Raimund, a passionate mustachioed man, was well on his way to becoming a hit two years ago. At the 2022/23 Four Hills Tournament, the newcomer, who almost no one had on their list at the time, received a place in the German squad and delivered! Both in Oberstdorf and in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Raimund shone with 14th and 15th places. In Innsbruck and Bischofshofen he stood out in 13th and 12th place from a weak DSV team.
From then on, Raimund was seen as a beacon of hope for the future, as someone who had what it took to achieve heights. The Göppingen native showed what he was made of last season in the four-act skiing spectacle, which he finished in eleventh place overall. A few weeks later, Raimund sailed onto the World Cup podium in an individual for the first time in Lake Placid with dream jumps behind Stefan Kraft (Austria). Since then, “Hille,” as he is called, has been waiting in vain for the next coup.
Significantly less Larifari
It can’t be the pressure. The open-minded Raimund is not one to fuss over things unnecessarily. He needs some, he said in the Sportschau podcast at the end of last season. In recent years he has often not thought about anything at all “once or twice” been surprised. That has changed significantly.
“There has to be a certain amount of pressure so that I can give 100 percent, but no more than that.”he said. His family feels very good when he has one “Kick in the butt” need. However, this has improved significantly over the past few years: “I overshadowed the Larifari a lot more and saw that I was getting better and better.”
Sportschau winter sports podcast, March 28, 2024 12:00 p.m
It is possible that the expectations and demands inhibit Raimund. They have increased significantly after last season’s successes. Probably also with Raimund, who was stacked low before the season. “I’m scaling back my goals because before each season you don’t know what to expect. You need momentum and a bit of luck.” He always gives 100 percent and tries to get better every day in order to eventually be at the top.
World Cup participation as a goal
The goal is to take part in the Nordic World Ski Championships in Trondheim in February and Raimund is also aiming for the 2026 Olympic Games. To achieve this, he changed his diet in the summer, he now eats more consciously, trains more disciplined and is working on his jumping quality, “so that the good jumps happen more often“.
This winter the system doesn’t fit (yet), but it does “positive types” Raimund shouldn’t let the fact that he was 34th better at his Four Hills Tournament premiere in Oberstdorf in 2019 than this season throw him off course. It is his wish that the current start of the season is really just a small slump and that the Allgäu native, who has strong jumping skills, will soon start to fly high again.