Combined head Bieler

“World Championship gold in the team event is our big dream”

Combined head coach Christoph Bieler (l.) in conversation with young star Johannes Lamparter.

(Bild: Birbaumer Christof)

The new World Cup season kicks off with a triple pack for the Nordic combined athletes on Friday in Ruka, Finland. The "Krone" spoke to ÖSV head coach Christoph Bieler before departure about his team, the goals for the season, the World Championship dream and Norwegian arch-rival and high-flyer Riiber.

"Krone": Your team has been preparing for the World Championship winter since the beginning of April. All the homework done before the start?
Christoph Bieler: "The omens are not quite as good for our figureheads Johannes Lamparter and Stefan Rettenegger, but basically I'm very confident for the season. We worked very well in the summer."

What is bothering the two young stars ahead of the season opener?
"Johannes is developing very well after the protracted problem with his knee and is making very good progress. He's much further on than he was a month ago, but he's definitely still some way off his top level in terms of strength. Stefan is plagued by a persistent cold. He hasn't done any endurance training for almost two weeks, so he's missing the intensive sessions for the first races. I am convinced that he will be very, very strong again over the course of the season."

What can we expect from veterans like Lukas Greiderer and Franz-Josef Rehrl?
"For the World Cup, we need one or two strong players alongside the two young stars. We will have to rely on our established athletes. Lukas in particular is strong because he performs better at major events than at other races. He hopes that he will be able to show what he can do in the World Cup before then. And after the last jumps and test races, I expect Franz-Josef to be able to compete in the front field again. He has regained his old strength on the hill."

What are the big goals for the coming winter?
We want to win the Nations Cup again. The most important thing for the whole coaching staff is that we have the strongest team. To achieve this, we have to celebrate victories and win podium places. And not just with one athlete, but with the whole team."

The World Championships in Trondheim are certainly the highlight of the season ...
 "Of course. We want to compete there with four people who are in absolute top form at the time. Not all competitions will be fair in Trondheim due to the wind conditions. So it's all the more important that we have several trump cards up our sleeves and don't have to rely on just one athlete."

Norway will be the last time a team competition is on the World Championships program ...
"It would be an absolute dream come true to win the last team event at a World Championships in our sport. We haven't won a team event since 2011. There have always been victories in the team sprint with two people, but we haven't won a race with four athletes since then. It would be amazing to knock Germany or Norway off the throne after such a long time with a completely new generation."

World Cup record winner Jarl Magnus Riiber complained of health problems before the start.

(Bild: AP)

Speaking of Norway. High-flyer Jarl Magnus Riiber recently complained that he has been pooping blood for weeks ...
"It's always interesting to hear the stories about Riiber. I've never experienced a start where he didn't talk about health problems. That leaves us relatively cold. We know for sure that when he's at the start, he's the man to beat. His jumping performance should still be incredibly good."