Why Austria’s ski jumpers are flying in everyone’s face

Which team is as broadly based and has such a large pool of ski jumpers as the ÖSV? Five out of six podium places in the two tour competitions speak volumes, and five ÖSV jumpers have already been in the top 3 this winter. Maximilian Ortner steps in at short notice for the injured Daniel Huber and ends up on the podium in his second World Cup appearance. Manuel Fettner was left off the touring team, even though he finished sixth and was 13th in the overall World Cup. “Our people push each other and raise the level. Unfortunately, I always have to cut people from the team,” says head coach Andreas Widhölzl.

Tradition

Starting with coaching legend Baldur Preiml, a ski jumping culture has developed and established itself in Austria over the last 50 years that is second to none. The know-how is passed on from generation to generation in the Nordic family; former ski jumping stars become head coaches or hold other important positions. From Toni Innauer to Andreas Felder, from Heinz Kuttin to Andreas Widhölzl, who is now even more successful as a coach than he was as a jumper. The red-white-red ski jumping DNA is different from alpine skiing, where hardly even a well-known ex-runner pursues a coaching career.

Material advantage

Not only is the wind a decisive factor in ski jumping, the sport has now become highly technological. It’s about aerodynamics and air resistance; the fine-tuning between skis, bindings and boots is a matter of millimeters. The ÖSV leaves nothing to chance in this regard: wind tunnel tests are standard anyway, and prototypes are developed in the in-house research department. When Manuel Fettner jumped to Olympic silver and team gold in 2022, his jump suit, his bindings, his shoes and the jumping wedges were all ÖSV home-made.

Infrastructure

Austria is a real paradise for ski jumpers. Bergisel, Bischofshofen, Seefeld, Hinzenbach, Villach – the density of ski jumps suitable for the World Cup is enormous for a small country like Austria. There are numerous smaller facilities practically everywhere from Ländle to Styria where youngsters can learn the ABCs of ski jumping. The only drawback: The Vienna City Eagles, one of the most committed ski jumping clubs in the country, still have to travel hours to training in neighboring federal states.

Sports schools

The largest and most renowned talent factory in winter sports is still Stams. In the ski high school there, teenagers matured and matured to become world champions and Olympic champions, and tour leader Daniel Tschofenig is also a Stams graduate. There are other Nordic schools with a focus on Saalfelden and Eisenerz.

Importance

Ski jumping is very popular within the ÖSV and is as professionally organized as the Alpine skiing division. This distinguishes Austria from the Norwegians, where ski jumping is overshadowed by cross-country skiers and biathletes. Ski jumping has long since become a cash cow for the ÖSV, with tour jumping in particular bringing a lot of money into the coffers. Alpine skiing and ski jumping now finance the other ÖSV sports.