Dreams come true part 1 – World Championships in Val di Fiemme
The two-year long waiting came to the end and new ski jumping individual and team world champions ascended to the throne for another two years time. After a couple of weeks packed with exhilaration, tears, injuries, disappointments and surprises, Italian Val di Fiemme said goodbye to the athletes of the 2013 Nordic World Ski Championships. As always there were winners and… the less lucky ones. Let’s take a quick look at them.
PART ONE – INDIVIDUALS
Anders Bardal
The Norwegian was the first athlete to grab the gold medal of the ski jumping event. Although still giving way to Gregor Schlierenzauer in this season’s overall World Cup, this time he managed to defeat his younger college by 4.2 points with his jumps on 103.5 m and 100 m on a normal hill. 11th on the large hill and twice on the unfortunate 4th place in the team competitions, the Norwegian cannot consider the event as a massive success but definitely should be satisfied with his regular jumps and of course one gold. Considering the fact this season he chalked up only one victory (in Wisla) and has never managed to bring any individual medals from the World Championships before, this success is a big one for Bardal. “The dream came true. The best day at the hill ever,” he said after the final jump (TVP Sport link to the video – in English).
Gregor Schlierenzauer
There is no need of an in-depth introduction of this great athlete – a multi-medallist with 49 World Cup victories (the highest number in the history of this sport ever) and the current World Cup Leader. In such a young age (23 years old) he achieved almost everything. In Val di Fiemme Gregor did not fully manage to repeat the great results from the Championships in Oslo, where he claimed a victory of an individual event on a large hill as well as two Golds of the team events, but his performance can be still perceived as a success. With his regular jumps on 98 m and 97.5 m popular Schlieri landed on a second place of the individual normal hill event. What is more, his jumps massively contributed to the Gold of the team event on a large hill, as well as a silver in the first ever World Championships’ mixed team competition. “After bringing three medals I’d assess these championships as a success, however, I’m not completely satisfied with my jumps on a large hill. I know that I can jump better than that,” he posted on his blog (link to the post – in German).
Peter Prevc
It seams these Championships were Prevc’s time to shine. The young Slovenian might seem inconspicuous but this can also present his biggest strength. He is biding his time during the regular World Cup competitions, having no previous victories or even podiums, to redouble his efforts at bigger events. Two years ago Prevc grabbed bronze at the large hill in Oslo, while this year he was the only athlete to be on the podium of both individual competitions. Eventually, with his two brilliant jumps on 130.5 m he took silver on the large hill and a bronze on a normal hill after landing on 102.5 m and 98.5 metres line. Definitely, results to remember.
Kamil Stoch
Some might say that the history repeats itself and that the Val di Fiemme hill is very lucky for Polish athletes. Exactly ten years ago it was legendary Adam Malysz, who won the World Champion title on the same hill, as Stoch this year. Kamil, once in Malysz’s leadership shadow, is working his way up the ski jumping ladder now. 5th in last season’s World Cup classification, 4th in this year’s Four Hills Tournament, 6th on the normal hill at the Championships in Oslo – he was missing the most important trophies by the skin of his teeth. The long-awaited win at the World Championships in Predazzo, ahead of Peter Prevc and Anders Jacobsen, shows his rivals how dangerous he will be next season. “Finally I’ve got the medal, something I worked on hard for a long time. It’s an unbelievable feeling,” Stoch said after the medal ceremony (Skijumping.pl link to the video – in Polish).
Anders Jacobsen
These championships sealed Jacobsen’s great comeback to the world of sports. Some might say that bringing only one medal, in particular the bronze one, is not enough to consider the championships a massive success. However, bearing in mind that the Norwegian took a one-year long break from jumping, he can be very happy about his current form. This season’s three (for now) World Cup victories and the second place in the Four Hills Tournament are showing the comeback was a well-thought-out decision. The bronze of the World Championships with his jumps on 129 m and 131 m on the large hill (just 0.6 points behind Prevc and 6.7 points behind Stoch) emphasize his return to form. “It was a nice and an unusual podium. I’m happy to jump better and better. It’s a good sing for the rest of the season,” he said in the interview (link to the Fiemme2013 video – in English).
