Since yesterday, 3:17 p.m. Austrian time, the Olympic flame has been burning in Beijing. Already on the first weekend, Austria’s team brings hot irons into play. As at the Summer Games six months ago in Tokyo, when cycling sensation Anna Kiesenhofer surprised everyone with her victory in the road race at the start, gold on the first weekend in Beijing would also be a liberating blow for the red-white-red team, from which (unlike at the summer games) a lavish medal yield is expected.
Four years ago in Pyeongchang, Austria made it into the top ten of the most successful participating nations with 14 podium finishes. The extrapolation of the Austria Press Agency for the Winter Games in China amounts to between ten and 23 medals for the 106-strong squad. Karl Stoss, President of the Austrian Olympic Committee (ÖOC), expects 14 to 17 medals – “depending on the infection process”. With the ski jumper Sara Marita Kramer, an important red-white-red medal bank fell over due to a positive corona test, which would have been the gold favorite on the first weekend in Beijing at the start of the ski jumping competitions.
Without them, the chances on the Olympic hills have dropped significantly. The highlight of the first weekend is the men’s downhill on Sunday (4 a.m.). With Vincent Kriechmayr and Daniel Hemetsberger, Upper Austria has two promising aces at the start. For the ski nation of Austria, a medal is almost a must in the supreme alpine discipline. If there is a weekend without an Austrian medal, not only the fire burns in Beijing, but also the hat.
Source: Nachrichten
