Ilkka Herola and Eero Hirvonen took the double victory in the combined summer GP overall. Next, the duo will compete in Lahti at the SC summer championships this weekend. The autumn program includes camping, for example, at next winter’s World Cup venue in Planica.
Eero Hirvonen ended the combined summer GP series with a handsome race win on Sunday in Austria. The overall results of the tour bode well for the upcoming World Cup and World Cup season, because Ilkka Herola celebrated the victory of the overall competition and Hirvonen’s second place.
– It gives quite a lot of faith in what to do, especially when the last couple of seasons have been more challenging. The summer offered great experiences, but at this point it is even more important that I got confirmation of my own condition. At this point, success is really important, Hirvonen, who has returned to Finland, is happy.
Hirvonen has reached the podium in the combined World Cup six times, but it has been more than four years since the last time.
In the last two seasons, Hirvonen has reached the top ten only four times. However, there was light at the end of the tunnel in March, when Hirvonen ended the season in Oslo in seventh place, which was his best in three years.
Hirvonen is known as a hard skier, but even that side has not been as agile in recent years as at its best. In addition, the gap with the top men has been so great after the hill section that even in top skiing it has been a total impossibility to get into the prize positions.
Now I have found the jumping flair that was lost, even though the training itself has just been changed. This summer, Hirvonen has traveled less and trained more at his home hill in Jyväskylä. Polishing the basics in peace has been a recipe that works.
– There is no need to reinvent the wheel. Everyone can say how something is done, but you have to find the right feeling for technical things so that the technology starts moving in the right direction. It depends on the little things, but the work has to come from the spine.
According to Hirvonen, the jumps at the summer games were the best he has performed in competitions in years. The 26-year-old athlete believes that it is still possible to significantly improve them.
– In my case, in the summertime like this, you can’t talk about the technology being completely standardized to the point where you get good jumps every time you go up the hill. I don’t see that it needs to be at this point. The overall level is improving little by little, and there is plenty of time to improve the best jumps before winter.
New national team coaching patterns
Served as head coach of the combined Finnish national team for ten years Petter Kukkonen resigned after last season. Responsible for hill training Falko Krismayr he didn’t continue in his position either.
New head coach Antti Kuisma and hill trainer Lauri Asikainen were already familiar to Eero Hirvone.
– The cooperation has started very nicely. Mäki-combined has small circuits, so there has been no need to start playing familiar games. The results of the summer games will certainly strengthen the confidence of the entire team, especially when there is new coaching and a new team, says Hirvonen.
There have been other significant changes behind the scenes of the hill jumping and combined national teams in recent months. Coached the Chinese national ski jumping team in recent years Mika Kojonkoski was named the leader of Finnish ski jumping and combined sports. The Dutchman is responsible for the equipment development of the sports Pierre Hartmann.
However, one pillar has remained unchanged in Hirvonen’s sports career. Former head coach Petter Kukkonen will continue to work as Hirvonen’s personal coach.
– The relationship between me and Petter has become closer and closer. We talk about things more. It sounds funny that the relationship has become closer, because in the past we have toured the world in camps and competitions. We don’t take things for granted, that, for example, we should always do things or exercise in a certain way.
The two live close to each other, so they have been able to go jogging and cycling together. Kukkonen has followed the roller skiing and strength exercises on site. At the start of the season, the situation is different, when Kukkonen does not go around the World Cup.
– The whole has worked really well. I’ve had a good feeling about it since the beginning of the whole training season. Petter and I talked at length in the spring about training stuff and what has gone wrong in the last few years.
According to Hirvonen, solutions have already been found, which was reflected in the summer level-up.
– I think the biggest thing is that jumping was difficult and looked difficult from the outside. It has been the biggest factor affecting the result. Even so, the skiing side has not been competitive in the last two years. Changes have been made to that practice.
Next weekend, Hirvonen will compete in Lahti in the SC summer championships, where Ilkka Herola and the women’s summer GP series, who finished third in the women’s GP series Minja Korhonen15.
After the WC competitions, the national team travels to the camp in Planica, the future WC venue. The World Cup is less than half a year away.
– Isn’t it the most important thing that I can keep a good feeling. There is no need to invent anything new. I’m quite confident that it will be visible in the winter, says Hirvonen.