Karl Geiger looked like someone who had just gone all-in on black – and then came red. Geiger is rarely found in casinos, he learned the craft of ski jumping, that is, in the winter sports industry. In this regard, he did not miss the address. Wisla, Poland, the first Ski Jumping World Cup of the winter season that has just begun. But these green plastic rugs like hanging ornaments, with their white and red horizontal stripes, have more of the charm of a roulette table. And roulette doesn’t seem to be Geiger’s specialty.
One of the best ranked eagles from the German Ski Association (DSV) had lost all chances to score points on the first jump. Rank 34, lost the second round. Altogether, this corresponded to what German athletes achieved in the first two of a total of 40 competitions planned for the World Cup. On the first day, Pius Paschke was the best in twelfth place, ahead of Markus Eisenbichler (13th) and Andreas Wellinger (23rd), who had returned. Pole Dawid Kubacki landed well ahead of the three, ahead of Norwegian Granerud and Austrian Kraft.
This weekend in Wisla was about more than points and distances. As ski jumping started earlier than ever before because of the upcoming World Cup, it was also somehow about the future of this sport. And maybe it was even about the existence of an entire industry that could be in jeopardy for professionals and amateur athletes alike because winters around the world have less and less snow and unreliable ready to land or sculpt.
At least these are thoughts that apparently also worry DSV team manager Horst Hüttel more intensely, as he suggested on Saturday after the jump at ARD. “The question of the future will not be what we want – but what can we do. What can still be represented in our society? The question is, which is the right way?”
The game has always been a problem in ski jumping
In the case of Wisla, the route passed through an ice rink on both days. Conclusion after day one: “It was good, it was difficult for me to get in here, especially with the track,” explained Eisenbichler on Saturday. “It’s a little different here because of the hot temperatures and the rain. And of course the women ran first.”
Analyst Eisenbichler was basically right, although “running down” in Upper Bavaria should indicate massive speed – and on this point at least DSV’s women had as difficult a time as their male counterparts on Saturday. In the faces of Selina Freitag (19th), Agnes Reich (20th) and eight-time World Cup winner Katharina Althaus (21st), you can read as much enthusiasm as the roulette player Geiger. On Sunday – in dry conditions – things changed at least for the current best German jumper Althaus, who this time was only surpassed by Austrian Eva Pinkelnig. “Thank God it’s not raining today, I was better on the first jump,” explained the second Althaus on the first, before leaving the roulette mats with a smile.
The game has always been a problem in ski jumping. This is mainly due to the air element, which sometimes moves – this is very relevant in this sport – whether on white snow or green fabric.
DSV team boss Hüttel really campaigned for repeats over the weekend. “Climate change is real. Ski jumping would have a solution and a concept with an ice rink and a mat to counteract that. It works well,” he said into the ARD microphone. Karl Geiger said nothing at first – and a day later jumped into the second round and finished in 18th place behind Paschke (16th) and ahead of Philipp Raimund (20th) and Eisenbichler (21st). Kubacki achieved the double victory on his own. And the Germans now have a score to settle with Wisla, not at the roulette table, but at the ski jumping table.