Just in time for the Nordic Ski World Championships in Planica, Andreas Wellinger is back among the world leaders – and after a season that was messed up for the DSV-Adler, he is suddenly fueling hopes of a medal. In other disciplines, a generation change is on the horizon.
Julian Schmid unpacked his coffee machine full of friends, Andreas Wellinger enjoyed the fantastic mountain scenery, Katharina Hennig already did the first laps: In the postcard idyll of Planica, the German combined athletes, ski jumpers and cross-country skiers started their long-awaited World Cup mission on Tuesday. Striking: The greatest hopes rest on names that played almost no role at the home World Cup 2021 in Oberstdorf.
The generation change in the combination is striking: Schmid, who is only 23 years old, is taking part in his first World Championships in Slovenia and, thanks to his three victories this season, is already the number one hope for gold. The long-standing stars Eric Frenzel and Johannes Rydzek have not yet made it onto the podium this winter – and thanks to their young colleagues, they are mainly focusing on the team competitions in Planica.
“The younger generation has overtaken them, that’s clearly visible,” says national coach Hermann Weinbuch. Even Olympic champion Vinzenz Geiger is still a freshman at the World Championships, so far he has not won an individual medal. This is especially true for the 17-year-old student Nathalie Armbruster, who has only been active in the World Cup for a year and has her sights set on a medal.
Andreas Wellinger may be a well-known name among ski jumpers, but he is still a returnee on the list of medal candidates: the Bavarian, who had been injured for a long time, only clinched his first World Cup victory in over five years shortly before the World Championships. “He’s back and has taken the lead in the team. At the moment he’s our jumper with the best prospects,” says national coach Stefan Horngacher.
“I’ve often gotten in my face in the last few years,” said Wellinger, who had been repeatedly slowed down by injuries after his Olympic victory in 2018, “but I’ve never lost my passion for ski jumping”. That seems to be paying off now at the latest.
But the hopes do not rest on the Ruhpoldinger. The long-time pilot Karl Geiger, who won four medals in four starts in his home town of Oberstdorf two years ago, has recently shown clearly improving form, as has Markus Eisenbichler. One of this trio should climb the podium on the normal hill in the individual on Saturday. “We should strive for that,” says Horngacher.
In cross-country skiing, after five world championships without any medals, every German name among the podium candidates is new. Katharina Hennig’s still stands out. “The current season is definitely my best so far. I’m super happy with three individual podium places so far,” says the Saxon, who even won the first German World Cup since 2009 at the beginning of January.
Especially in the women’s relay, the podium is almost mandatory. At the dress rehearsal, Hennig and Co. finished second before a reporting error led to disqualification. For the men, hopes rest on Friedrich Moch, who is only 22 years old and is about to play his second World Cup.
The first German medal, however, can be won by a well-known figure on Thursday: ski jumper Katharina Althaus won World Championship gold in the mixed team in 2015, eight years later the Oberstdorf native can now follow suit in Planica. Selina Freitag, 21-year-old sister of ex-world champion Richard Freitag, has knocked on the door at the top – at least in women’s ski jumping, the generational change has not yet taken place.
