Do you remember? It was February 11, 2018, when Andreas Wellinger sank to his knees with happiness and cried at the end of a chaotic ski jumping event due to the weather in Pyeongchang, South Korea. At that moment the Ruhpoldinger knew: I am an Olympic champion. Even when he jumped onto the podium, tears burst out of him, and only then was he ready for a huge shout of joy.
2148 days later, December 29, 2023: Wellinger has had tough years in sport when he sent himself and the Oberstdorf audience into ecstasy with his victory at the start of the Four Hills Tournament. No tears, but unbridled cheers followed by quiet moments where he just smiles happily.
A little later he says: “This success is very, very high. It’s hard to compare with an Olympic victory, but it will be in a similar category.” These words give an idea of what a tough road lay between these two successes and what the 28-year-old has done to get back to the top.
Tough road between successes
Even back in Pyeongchang, he won the hearts of winter sports fans not only because of his victory, but also because of his emotions and his relaxed, refreshing manner. “It’s beautiful to cry with,” wrote WELT columnist Oskar Beck. And it is this emotional success of the past, coupled with the stumbles, even the crash afterwards, as well as the tireless fighting spirit that makes the victory in Oberstdorf so special for him and the spectators. And that makes ski jumping Germany dream that 22 years after Sven Hannawald in Wellinger, a German tour winner will be again.
also read
It’s actually a little ski jumping miracle. Because Wellinger has achieved what many no longer believed he could do after his cruciate ligament tear in 2019. “A great development,” enthuses ski jumping legend Jens Weißflog in an interview with WELT. “Returning to the top of this sport after such an injury was previously considered almost impossible. The fact that he did it is really strong and amazing.”
Symbolically and actually, Andreas Wellinger has been down several times in recent years, like here in 2018. Now he is back successfully
Quelle: picture alliance/SvenSimon/FrankHoermann/SVEN SIMON
Wellinger has been jumping consistently at a high level throughout the winter and started the tour in second place in the World Cup. After his Oberstdorf victory ahead of Ryoyu Kobayashi (Japan) and Stefan Kraft (Austria), he is now in the role of the hunted – nothing that intimidates him. The 28-year-old has experienced enough to cope with it. The most important thing was the present: “Enjoy the victory.” And then? “I would say this is a nice starting position. For me, the challenge is that I keep ski jumping like this,” says Wellinger. “If I do that, I can stay in the role of the hunted.” It sounds as logical as it is simple, but it is not easy.
Wellinger has already been at the top of the tour once: in 2017/2018 he took second place in the overall ranking, although a long way behind the Pole Kamil Stoch. Only a little later came the big triumph with an Olympic victory on the normal hill, plus silver on the large hill and with the team. “A childhood dream came true,” says Wellinger.
The shine gave way to sadness and frustration
Four years earlier, at the Winter Games in Sochi, at just 18 years old, he had already contributed to the team’s Olympic victory. Back then, after years of mediocrity, it was something like the resurrection of German ski jumping. With the individual Olympic victory in 2018, Wellinger’s luck was perfect – and Germany had a new winter sports favorite.
Andreas Wellinger cries after winning the gold medal and is hugged by teammates
Source: picture alliance/Daniel Karmann/dpa
But after that he stumbled in sports. The shine on the ski jump gave way to sadness and frustration. At the 2018/2019 Four Hills Tournament he fell after landing in Oberstdorf, although behind the fall line and therefore irrelevant for the points, but the scene was symbolic: the jump of 114.5 meters was not enough for the second round.
“It was just a shitty jump,” Wellinger growled, brutally open. “I just gave myself the blow for that.” The entire winter was forgettable; at the World Championships in Seefeld, Austria he had to be a substitute and spectator.
Flying in the evening light: Andreas Wellinger jumping in Oberstdorf
What: REUTERS
But things got even worse: In the summer of 2019, Wellinger tore a cruciate ligament during training. Pain, a long rehabilitation, forced break. And then, in March 2020, when he was slowly getting back into training, he broke his collarbone while on vacation.
also read
It was clear that his subsequent comeback season would be hard, but it was more than that. At the 2020/2021 Four Hills Tournament he even jumped too weakly for the second half, missed qualifying for the New Year’s competition on New Year’s Eve and had to leave afterwards. “Overall, the path was a very difficult one,” says Wellinger, “then you try to question everything. What could be the problem? I haven’t forgotten how to ski jump. It took a lot of time.” A lot.
also read
And just when things were slowly looking up, when he had hopes of being able to play at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, the next setback: Wellinger tested positive for Corona and he watched the competitions from afar.
“I kept getting hit,” says Wellinger. But he was never discouraged. With patience, willpower and a strong belief that he could do it, he fought on and on and took every detour in his stride.
World Cup victory in Lake Placid as the first reward
1827 days after the cruciate ligament rupture, the first sporting reward: Wellinger returned to the top of the world on February 11, 2023 with a surprising World Cup victory in Lake Placid and a short time later sensationally celebrated World Championship silver on the normal hill. In the end he finished seventh in the overall World Cup. And now this winter, which marks Andreas Wellinger’s final return to the top of the world.
“Never before,” he said on Friday evening, had he experienced such an atmosphere as during the German anthem in Oberstdorf. And other similar moments could follow, perhaps as early as January 1st in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
also read
