An anonymous ski jumper stirs up the scene with serious allegations of fraud. It’s about lax controls on the suits. The German athletes around Markus Eisenbichler criticize the quoter and defend the new material controller Christian Kathol.
The comments of a ski jumper about trickery and bungling in the suit inspection met with incomprehension and criticism from the German athletes. “I think it’s a very daring statement. It’s competitive sport, everyone tries to go to the limit,” said Andreas Wellinger. An active ski jumper who was not named had told the Swiss newspaper “Blick” that controls were rarely looked at very closely despite strict requirements. “I can’t take the suit controls seriously at the moment,” the active jumper is quoted as saying.
The athlete jumped at the last ski flying weekend at the Kulm with a suit that was too big and didn’t comply with the rules. However, he passed the step check before the start without any problems and was able to leave the stadium after his jump without further checks. “Practically everyone cheats, so I have to follow suit, otherwise I don’t have a chance,” said the jumper.
“It’s always a difficult subject. Such a suit is adapted to your own body. The body varies, the fabric varies,” commented Karl Geiger on the subject. “I think our controller has a line that he follows, a common thread. He has a limit and I wouldn’t say it’s abnormal in any way,” said the 29-year-old. The Austrian Christian Kathol has been the material controller in the World Cup since last summer. He took over from Mika Jukkara in May. The Finn was not without controversy and, among other things, caused criticism at the 2022 Olympics in Beijing through the disqualification of several jumpers in the mixed team competition. Germany’s Katharina Althaus was also among those disqualified.
“In my opinion, the controls are 100 times better than last year. You should concentrate on the sport,” said Wellinger. Team colleague Markus Eisenbichler also sees no reason to criticize the new controller. “He does very good checks. I know very well: If it’s too big, he measures it and you’re out. We’re moving in a good frame. He doesn’t always disqualify immediately. He’s totally fair,” said the Bavarian . “It’s about the sport here. If the suit is a centimeter bigger, that’s why you don’t jump any further. The Swiss colleague who did it should concentrate on the essentials.”
