ski jumping
The home game for the Austrian ski jumpers in Hinzenbach is still three weeks away, but Eva Pinkelnig and Co. are already looking forward to it. Not only because Pinkelnig in particular is currently setting the tone in the World Cup, but also because there is an anniversary to celebrate on the Aigner ski jump this year.
On February 10th and 11th, Hinzenbach will be hosting the world’s best ski jumpers for the tenth time. This year the fans can rightly speculate with a home win. Because Pinkelnig has five wins of the season so far. Chiara Kreuzer was also almost back in top form, the Hinzenbach double winner of 2020 celebrated her first podium finish of the winter in third place in Japan last week.
At the press event in Linz on Wednesday, Kreuzer, who in 2020 with her double pack had ensured the last ÖSV victories in Hinzenbach to date, was absent due to gastrointestinal problems. But that doesn’t dampen the anticipation, as the woman from Salzburg emphasized in a message: “I’m always looking forward to Hinzenbach, a hill that I like to go to, even if things don’t go so well.” Kreuzer enjoys the return even more because the shape is good this time.
Hinzenbach “a highlight”
Head coach Harald Rodlauer survived the return journey from the successful Japan tour without any health problems and said in Linz: “We often train there, we know the hill. But that doesn’t make it any easier because it’s a small hill.” With top performances so far this winter, they’ve created a great starting position. “That makes us very optimistic that we will also be successful in Hinzenbach.” From the Austrian point of view, the individual competitions taking place on the Hinzenbach normal hill on February 10th and 11th are “a highlight” in the competition calendar every year.
Last year, Sara Marita Kramer and Lisa Eder achieved podium places in Upper Austria in Slovenian successes, the ÖSV quartet won the team competition. This time the victory will probably only lead to Pinkelnig. Including her two triumphs in Villach before the turn of the year, the woman from Vorarlberg was on the podium eight times in a row, only in one of 13 competitions in the winter did she not succeed. Before the home competitions, Pinkelnig and Co. still have the German World Cup large hill stations in Hinterzarten and Willingen on the program.