Four Hills Tournament: German ski jumpers hope for a miracle

Blet’s start with the good. With what fuels optimism for a furious final of the Four Hills Tournament from a German point of view and what at least minimally feeds hope for a ski jumping miracle. The ski jump in Bischofshofen is big, very big actually.

There is no official ski jumping hill that allows distances of over 200 meters, but its characteristics come very close to that. Bischofshofen, that’s for sure, is considered a flying hill. And Karl Geiger (27) can fly, it wasn’t until December that he sensationally celebrated the world championship title in Planica. Markus Eisenbichler also has the “ski flying gene”, as ex-national coach Werner Schuster attests to him.

So the chances are that the fourth and last tour station will end this Wednesday (4.30 p.m., ZDF / Eurosport) with a German at the top of the podium. Even if the qualification was only mediocre. We are talking – mind you – of the podium of the final competition, not that of the overall classification.

Damn Bergisel

Because things are different there. And with all the value of a single tour jumping: In the end, the traditional event is about the big coup. The dream of the first German triumph 19 years after Sven Hannawald’s victory broke in Innbruck am Bergisel. Once again. “A miracle should happen now,” says national coach Stefan Horngacher. There should be.

Looking back to Innsbruck: Karl Geiger arrives in second place on the tour, but finishes the first round in 30th place and loses a lot of points. Although he is still working his way up to 16th place with the second jump, like four times before in the past five years, the hill on Bergisel throws the respective German top jumper back immensely and decisively.

As frustrated and angry as on Sunday one has rarely seen the otherwise quiet Allgäu. “In the past few years, the Bergisel has always been our broken neck, especially during the tour,” says Geiger. “That it’s like this again this year: You just vomit.”

Chain of unfavorable circumstances

What was it? At first Geiger had not understood what had happened in the first round. He had prepared well and was motivated. And then that. The second jump finally, when he had to rush up, the preparation seemed less than ideal, went much better. “That made me fox, I had to classify it,” he says.

The analysis showed: “A chain of unfavorable circumstances. The jump wasn’t ideal, you don’t have to talk about it. On this hill it is brutal when you make certain small mistakes. ”Although the hill allows fewer long jumps than others, it is considered treacherous and spreads enormously with small mistakes and / or difficult conditions.

“That is extremely bitter. I tried to learn from last year, “says Geiger, shaking his head and quarreling with himself,” but I’m not hiding now. I’ll march through there. ”And then he adds:“ Apparently next year! ”And laughs. Gallows humor meets defiant reaction.

From second place, just four points behind the leader, he slipped to fourth place and now has almost 25 points compared to first place, the equivalent of around 14 meters. In the front now Poland’s ski jumping star Kamil Stoch, as top favorite Halvor Egner Granerud from Norway also failed. “It’s only through when the last one has landed in Bischofshofen,” says Geiger, “but a lot would have to happen to intercept the Poles up there. I will of course give everything, but I have to look away from the overall standings. ”Geiger wants a conciliatory, if possible brilliant, conclusion – and then see what that is enough for in the overall standings.

This is what the ranking looks like

Team mate and buddy Eisenbichler does not want to give up hope for the little ski jumping miracle yet. Not for violinists and not for himself. Because it’s a flying hill that suits both him and Geiger. Because you can put several meters between yourself and the competition with two fabulous jumps. And also: “The others can also make mistakes,” says the 29-year-old, who is fifth in the overall ranking. “Anything can always happen.” The catch: Even if one of the Germans shows two top-class jumps, Kamil Stoch has to do his part and only bring about a very mediocre performance. The top five of the overall ranking at a glance:

1. Kamil Stoch (33, Poland, 809.9 points): The three-time Olympic champion is a veteran. Given his current form, it seems almost impossible that his nerves flutter. Second in Oberstdorf, fourth in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, first in Innsbruck. He has already won the tour twice (2016/17 and 2017/18), including once with triumphs on all four hills. “If Kamil does a normal competition, he wins,” says Geiger. In his homeland, Stoch is a folk hero. After his Grand Slam on the tour, Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced: “Today we are all together to form the entourage of a new king – Kamil!”

2. Dawid Kubacki (30, Poland, 794.7): The toughest competitor for Stoch. Kubacki likes the hill in Bischofshofen, set the hill record there in 2019 with 145 meters, won the final competition last year and was crowned tour winner. He is the defending champion, has little pressure but in stable form. The Poles have the best chance of celebrating a double victory in the tour standings. Maybe with Kubacki as the winner.

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Halvor Egner Granerud (24, Norway, 789.3): Traveled to the tour as the leader of the overall World Cup and top favorite. Until the jumping in Innsbruck he never finished fourth this season. But Bergisel left him completely frustrated as 15th. Granerud then switched to attack and still wants to win the tour. Difficult, very difficult. But not as difficult as for violinists.

4. Karl Geiger (27, Oberstdorf, 785.2): Last year he was able to quickly tick off his disappointment in Innsbruck and said goodbye to Bischofshofen in second place and third in the overall ranking from the tour. The podium is back, no question about it. But the tour victory will have to wait. Horngacher says: “You can compare Kubacki with Karl: similarly tall and heavy, similar stature. And when you see how much Kubacki has developed, that means a lot for Karl. And I know for sure: There is a lot more in Karl. It takes patience and time to work this out even more. Next year we have the Olympic Games … “

5. Markus Eisenbichler (29, Siegsdorf, 776,5): He had imagined this tour to be different. Especially after the brilliant start to the season and the journey to Oberstdorf as second in the overall World Cup. The jump on the tour podium will be difficult enough, but Eisenbichler is in combat mode: “I won’t give up, that’s just not my nature.”

Miraculous catch-up

And after all, there were those who thought impossible to catch up in sport. In the 1993 Wimbledon final, for example, when Steffi Graf was down 1: 4 against Jana Novotna in the third set and the Czech had a match ball to make it 5: 1 on her own serve. In the end, Graf won 6: 4.

Munich 1972: The Finn Lasse Virén crashed in the 10,000 meter run. But he got up, fought his way back and won with a world record. Or Lillehammer 1994. In the ski jumping team competition, the Japanese looked like the sure winners before the last jump. But the almost impossible happened: Masahiko Harada crashed, Germany won gold. But you don’t wish that to anyone.