Trio in front of Paschke: Austria dominates the tour: With “Gaudi” into the home game

Andreas Wellinger doesn’t believe in switching sides to his adopted hometown. “I think it’s enough if we have an Austrian sitting here in the group,” says the Olympic ski jumping champion jokingly, referring to national coach Stefan Horngacher, who comes from Austria. The charismatic Wellinger definitely had the laughs on his side.

Like his head coach, last year’s runner-up also has a special connection to the dominant nation of this Four Hills Tournament. Wellinger lives there. Nevertheless, the 29-year-old states with a bit of pride: “Black-red-gold is my color combination.”

Three Austrians in the first three places

However, there were taunts between the tour hosts, says Wellinger. “That’s probably because the Austrians try to speak German,” he jokes. Wellinger considers himself and his teammates to be the linguistic original.

Taunts and jokes – Wellinger and his teammates can still keep up these days. On the hill, the expected duel between Germany and Austria has turned into a completely different constellation. The ÖSV Eagles have dominated the traditional event so far and could cover the entire podium in red-white-red for the first time in 13 years.

Before the second half of the tour with the competitions in Innsbruck this Saturday (1.30 p.m./ARD and Eurosport) and in Bischofshofen (January 6th), Daniel Tschofenig is leading ahead of Jan Hörl and Stefan Kraft. Wellinger’s sixth-placed teammate Pius Paschke is already more than 25 points behind the leader as the best German. And that despite the fact that Paschke had shaped the World Cup until the Christmas break.

Geiger doesn’t see a “miracle suit” from the Austrians

The euphoria in the neighboring country is huge. For the first time in a long time, the spectacular jump stadium on Bergisel, high above the city, is sold out with 22,500 spectators. What makes the ÖSV Eagles so strong?

According to Karl Geiger, it’s definitely not the jump suit. “People are talking about a miracle suit here. I’ve never had one before,” says the Oberstdorfer. “A suit has never flown on its own. It always takes a good jump,” adds Geiger, countering emerging speculation about the competition’s material advantages. The topic also bounces off the Austrian top jumper. “You should discuss it calmly, we have no problem with it,” says Tschofenig.

Tschofenig: Austria’s team is cooler “than ever before”

The 22-year-old, who also took over the lead from Paschke in the overall World Cup, does not feel any additional burden due to the increased expectations. The strength of the team makes things easier for him and his teammates. “You can spread the pressure that comes from outside a little bit. That takes a little bit of pressure off your shoulders,” says Tschofenig, who also states: “I think the team is cooler than ever.”

Instead of watching each other and hoping for mistakes from their colleagues, Tschofenig, Kraft and Co. have fun together. On Instagram, Kraft and Michael Hayböck recently shared a bathrobe picture of going to the sauna together. On game nights, the team sits together in a happy atmosphere. “We have a lot of fun,” says Kraft.

After the two away games in Oberstdorf and Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the 31-year-old Kraft, who was the last Austrian to win the Golden Eagle for the touring champions in 2015, is looking forward to the special home atmosphere.

“This is one of the biggest highlights that can happen to you as a ski jumper: when you come back to Austria and the Bergisel is full,” he says. “The atmosphere is almost incomparable to any sporting event. It’s so cool. It certainly inspires us.”