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The opening of the World Cup for ski jumpers at the weekend in Wisla is different in many ways. It is not just the beginning of a season under the spell of the crown pandemic, which will mostly take place without spectators, the era of head coach Andreas Widhölzl is also beginning for Austria’s ski jumpers.
The 2006 Olympic team champion has been promoted to “Oberadler” in the ÖSV following the resignation of Andreas Felder. Before that, “Swider” was assistant coach to Alexander Pointner and Heinz Kuttin and head of the Continental Cup team.
“I really want to start. We have done everything possible, it will be exciting,” says Widhölzl. The 44-year-old sees “a lot of responsibility” in his new job, and a good atmosphere in the team is especially important to him.
“After being away from home many days a year, it’s easier when you get along. That makes the job easier. You can’t force it one way or another, but I think the team has grown very well together, that it was important to me, “says the head coach.
Widhölzl: “No one will have their heads ripped off”
Widhölzl, a qualified social pedagogue, advocates open communication and direct approach to problems that arise.
“Everyone has the freedom to come to the technical team and talk about things that may not be so good. That way, problems are solved faster. I also talk about things that I don’t like. For me it was important to strengthen the positive. boost the strengths of the athletes and tackle the works throughout the year. A dynamic has emerged that is positive. And there is also a good atmosphere when things are not going so well on the hill, “says the Tyrolean from Fieberbrunn. who now lives in Mieming with his family (three children).
After all, life has more facets than ski jumping.
“Back then there was the coach’s eat or die tactic: either you do it or you have a problem. I do not want that, because athletes perform, I am the companion and support them to be successful. If they’re okay, I’m okay too. “
Widhölzl emphasizes that “no one’s head gets ripped off” when criticized. During his days as a player, the relationship between coach and athlete was not always so harmonious.
“At that time, the coach had the tactic of eat or die: either you do it or you have a problem. I don’t want that, because athletes perform, I am the partner and I support them to be successful. When they are doing well, I am well too and that is important to me. “
The good humor among the ÖSV eagles is also emphasized by all the jumpers. Stefan Kraft has known Widhölzl for a long time and knows his abilities: “He is very fun and easy. You can talk to him well, he keeps the team together very well. It is a very nice union and I think that is even more important this year.” . when we travel so much and are only allowed to stay in our little circle. “
In addition, Widhölzl is “up to date” with jumping technique and equipment. “He knows this area a lot, which is very important,” says the two-time World Cup winner overall.
Michael Hayboeck follows the same line. “We are all very happy with the way things are going with Swider. We have known each other for a long time, the only difference is that now it is him who says where to go. He said from the beginning that it was not that he rides on the mistakes in somewhere and press the wound. For him, the most important thing is not to forget your strengths and develop them further. This approach fits me like madness, says Upper Austria.
VIDEO – This is what the ÖSV jumpers say about coach Andreas Widhölzl:
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Where does the ÖSV team stand compared to the competition?
Of course, Austrian ski jumpers want to have fun not only off the beaten track, but on the hill as well. At the kick-off in Wisla, where after Friday’s qualification there is a team competition on Saturday and an individual competition on Sunday, Philipp Aschenwald, Jan Hörl, Daniel Huber and Gregor Schlierenzauer also make up the ÖSV team.
This sextet should complete the first three stations in a “bubble” formed by the World Cup entourage. After returning from Poland, charter flights to Ruka (FIN), from there to Nizhny Tagil (RUS) and then to the Slovenian capital Ljubljana and from there to the World Ski Flying Championships in Planica.
With the exception of a summer GP competition, there were no comparisons to the competition, making it difficult for the coach to assess the level of performance of his team. Athletes would need time to find their way into the rhythm of the competition.
Schlierenzauer, the most successful jumper in the World Cup with 53 wins, Kraft now has 21 hits, expect “the usual suspects” up front. So in addition to his teammates, the Poles with Kamil Stoch and Dawid Kubacki, the Japanese Ryoyu Kobayashi, the Norwegians, Slovenes and Germans Karl Geiger (world runner-up) and Markus Eisenbichler, who was strong in summer (World Champion 2019 ).
Strength of “lucky bag” with high goals
With the ÖSV-Adler, the highest hopes are once again in Stefan Kraft. After his second overall victory, the Salzburg resident is defending the title, but the 27-year-old sees himself as a “lucky bag” due to back problems early on in Poland. However, he set big goals for the season with ski flying and the Nordic World Championships.
The two-time overall winner Schlierenzauer wants to get closer to the top and, accompanied by Widhölzl and his advisor Werner Schuster, sees himself on the right track. However, this is rocky. But even after six years without a podium, the 30-year-old remains highly motivated. “It is still very satisfying for me, I want to go back to the top. It is not easy, but it is a great challenge for my history, my career, but also as a person.”
As the 29th ÖSV ski jumper, Philipp Aschenwald from Tyrolean wants to enter the list of World Cup champions in a winter full of big events. “An individual victory in the World Cup is my declared goal,” underlines the 25-year-old Zillertal, who has advanced to number 2 on the team. With a second and third place as the best results, he was last tenth overall.
Five-time winner Michael Hayböck also posted an upward trend. “There is still a long way to go to get to the top ten regularly, but I have the confidence to do it,” explains Kraft’s roommate. After trying to change rooms in the training grounds, everything remains the same with the room layout in winter. “We have grown up very well together,” says Hayböck, who has lived in his own home in Rif near the training facility since the end of August.
Daniel Huber focused on greater consistency and stability of the jumps. “That should help me get more points and the top ten,” says the Salzburg native. His compatriot Jan Hörl believes that he has learned from last winter’s experience when he wanted to “destroy everything” after finishing third at Engelberg and falling into a deep depression.
The 22-year-old had more trouble than his peers with the change from FIS-prescribed material to regulated wedges that stick to the back of jumping boots. Before the start, however, be confident. “I don’t need to hide under any circumstances, I’m going to Wisla with a good feeling.”
Text as: © LAOLA1.at/APA
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