Karl Geiger draws strength from his last World Cup appearance in Wisla. The DSV eagle explains in his column for sport.de what he still needs to work on to crack the top 10.
I carefully open the front door and try to be as quiet as possible so that no one wakes up. Shortly after midnight I take a look at Oberstdorf through the living room window and a second look at the illuminated Schattenbergschanze – everything is quiet.
Behind me is a World Cup weekend in Wisla, Poland, which is basically at the border triangle of the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland. Wisla – that’s pure ski jumping tradition, Wisla, that was once again a loud festival, mostly orchestrated by the local fans, who used the funniest musical instruments to set the mood, Wisla, that’s a sea of red and white flags that you jump into jumps in.
The third World Cup stop this winter gave me further stability in my results. With good external conditions that quickly made us forget the Finnish wind turbulence of last weekend, I achieved 8th and 14th place and confirmed to me that I can firmly set my sights on the top ten.
I am aware of the points on which I need to continue working. The facts were particularly obvious in the test rounds and the qualification. During the competition in Poland I was able to mentally compensate for these deficits; willpower also makes a difference in ski jumping!
But: you have to continue to work on a small scale, although it is sometimes an advantage to know what needs to be worked on. In this respect, the current situation is quite comfortable – within reach of the top ten and the potential for improvement is clear!
Now it’s a matter of minutes
After the last jumps in Wisla, the familiar hectic departure breaks out; On the hill you want to gain meters, now it’s about minutes. A thousand kilometers to Oberstdorf, a ten hour drive at least – the route ahead of us and which we are very familiar with spurs us on.
The things are quickly thrown into the suitcase, the equipment is packed up, and the short distance up the hotel stairs to the car is walked several times until the vehicles and the crew are ready to leave. Everyone wants to go home, even if it’s getting late. The temptation to lie in bed at home and sleep in the next morning is greater than the appreciation of the opportunity to enjoy another night of Polish hospitality, which can really be felt at every moment.
We cross Slovakia and Austria, passing through Bratislava and Vienna – we don’t have time for sightseeing – St. Stephen’s Cathedral and the Prater have to wait until summer. We cross the border and think in terms of sub-goals: Munich, Kempten and then the ski jump shines high above Oberstdorf. The journey between the jumps is over.
The final touches to unloading are pure routine and then off to bed!
Kind regards
Karl Geiger