Four Hills Tournament

“This is crazy!” Astonishment after ÖSV dream start

Jan Hörl, Stefan Kraft and Daniel Tschofenig (from left to right) let the ÖSV cheer.

(Bild: Tröster Andreas)

First a quintuple victory in the qualifiers, then a triple victory in the opening competition. "It's crazy that we've done it like this again!" Daniel Tschofenig was amazed after the ÖSV's dream start to the 73rd Four Hills Tournament.

The ÖSV dominance had been announced on Saturday when five athletes from head coach Andreas Widhölzl's team took the top five places in qualifying. "A triple victory is absolutely brilliant, one nation or another will have a bit of a grudge against us, but we'll take that in our stride," smiled Tschofenig.

Daniel Tschofenig

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

ÖSV team believes in tour victory
The show by Stefan Kraft, Jan Hörl and Tschofenig at the opening competition in Oberstdorf further fueled Austria's hopes for the first overall victory at the Four Hills Tournament in ten years. In the last three World Cup competitions, eight out of nine possible podium places went to the triumvirate. Even five-time season winner Pius Paschke only has the role of hunter in the tour ahead of the New Year's competition on his home hill in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

Kraft was the last Austrian to take home the Tour winner's golden eagle in 2014/15 at the age of 21. He won his first World Cup jumping event in Oberstdorf back then, and now the veteran impressively made himself one of the favorites with his first win of the season. "It was perfect timing. I saved the two best jumps for the right time of the season," said the overall World Cup winner.

Stefan Kraft

(Bild: Tröster Andreas)

The triple victory at the start of the tour was "nothing to be taken for granted", Kraft emphasized. "We have to enjoy this." He takes a 3.5 point lead over Hörl and 11.5 over Tschofenig with him to Garmisch. Fourth-placed German Paschke is 13.8 points behind. "You always have to believe in it," said Kraft about a possible tour victory. "That's what we do as a whole team, that we hopefully pull one off. That's a big wish of ours."

Garmisch as a litmus test for Kraft
The team's strength was already evident in qualifying, when five Austrians were ahead. "It's a very good team atmosphere, where everyone can be who they are. That's also important," said Hörl. "We've taken a good level of self-confidence with us to this point." After the two double season winners Hörl and Tschofenig, Kraft in particular has recently shown improving form. "You know that Krafti is hard to beat when he has everything together," said Hörl about his Salzburg compatriot. "He always knows what he has to do."

Jan Hörl

(Bild: Tröster Andreas)

Garmisch could once again be the acid test for the 31-year-old. Kraft has only made it onto the podium there once - in third place on New Year's Day 2017. Between 2018 and 2023, he never finished in the top 10 and had to bury his tour hopes at the second stop each time. At the turn of the year 2021/22, the then world champion even failed to qualify for the competition on the large Olympic hill.

Stefan Kraft

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Even in Oberstdorf, on one of his favorite hills, Kraft said he was anything but calm. "I don't notice the routine when I strap on my skis up there. I feel like an 18-year-old boy who has no idea what to do right now," said the winner of 44 World Cup competitions. "But I know that when it comes to something, I often unpack my best jumps. I can rely on that."

Tschofenig and the learning process
Tschofenig, the dominator of the qualification and trial rounds and winner of the dress rehearsal in Engelberg, let his nerves get the better of him in the first competition jump, before showing the most valuable jump of the day in the second. "I'm still young and haven't done that many tours in any kind of favorite role. It's quite normal to have a bit of a ride with your emotions," said the 22-year-old from Carinthia. "These are learning processes that I will take with me and hopefully do differently in the coming years."

The opportunity has already presented itself in Garmisch. No Austrian has won there since Thomas Diethart, who is now an assistant coach in the ÖSV women's team in 2014. The Germans have been waiting even longer: since the "Grand Slam" of the last German tour winner to date, Sven Hannawald, in 2002, they have not managed a victory in the New Year's competition. However, Paschke will have to break an Austrian phalanx to end the two unbroken series.