The traditional Central European hill week is held again at the turn of the year. The classic tour starts on Wednesday with the qualifying round in Oberstdorf.
Finns are included Antti Aalto, Niko Kytösaho, Eetu Nousiainen and Mäkivik’s yellow bill Vilho Palosaari.
Urheilu’s expert who has won Mäkivikio a record five times Janne Ahonen highlights the five most interesting picks.
1. Kubacki with a wild temper
Polish pole vaulter Dawid Kubacki goes into the hill week as the biggest favorite to win. The 32-year-old mountain eagle has reached the highest podium Four times this season and has been second twice.
Kuback already has favorable memories of the hill week, as he conquered four races on the tour in the 2019-2020 season.
The Polish star is considered a hard worker. Janne Ahonen finds a clear reason why Kubacki has risen to a new level.
– This season, flying has progressed for him. Before, good things happened on the bow and she produced a lot of power, but the flying was a bit lacking and the speed was not maintained. Now flying is top class. The momentum is maintained and accelerated.
Ahonen has previously been critical of Kubacki’s flying style. But now even the golden eagle has had to humble himself and admire the Pole.
– I’ve never liked Kubacki’s flying style, but now you could almost say it’s stylish flying.
2. Will the superstar return to his prime?
of Japan Ryoyu Kobayashi has been part of the toughest mountain elite for years, but the past season has gone poorly for the 26-year-old athlete so far.
Kobayashi, who celebrated two overall victories in the World Cup, has not made it to the podium even once this season. In total points, he is only in 16th place.
However, Kobayashi has a great time during mountain week. He has won the tour twice and achieved no less than eight hill-week race wins. In the 2018–2019 season, he became by Sven Hannawald and by Kamil Stoch after the third jumper who has won all four races during the same hill week.
– Kobayashi has a similar situation to mine. It was a season that didn’t get off to a very good start. However, I always got fired up during hill week. I even won hill weeks, even though I wasn’t on the bettors’ favorite list, Ahonen recalls.
– I believe that Kobayashi will be able to do the same things.
3. The importance of the opening match
Ahonen wants to remind you of the old wisdom of Mäkiiko. Over the years, the race in Oberstdorf, which starts the tour, has been a fatal race for the winning chances of many favorites.
– You can’t win Mäkiwiikku in the first race, but you can lose it in that one. Some pre-favorite can crash in the first race, and then we are far from the top. We can’t afford to give that line these days.
Having achieved his first individual Olympic medal at the age of 36 Manuel Fettner is, according to Ahonen, the kind of jumper who can attack right away in the opening race. The experienced Austrian usually hasn’t done well during hill week. However, a well-run early season raises expectations.
– He was even. When he gets the right charm, he can be such a name.
4. Will the “bat version” be addressed?
Ahonen anticipates that the topic of discussion during the mountain week will be jump suits. A couple of years ago, in the combined discussion, too big jumpsuits, which gave a big competitive advantage, sparked a discussion.
Dress fights have been seen even after that, and this season too, the equipment and its control have come up for discussion.
– There is a lot of space in the suit for many countries and athletes. It brings a significant competitive advantage to the flight phase in jumping, and then we are talking about quite big differences, Tommi Nikunen broke two years ago.
There have been few rejections since the beginning of the season, but according to Ahone, the suits have had something to say. In an event like Mäkivikio, one rejection has big consequences.
– There are a few athletes whose suit, and especially the crotch part of the suit, is still quite a bat version. It is very doubtful how such a suit can go through.
According to Ahonen, for example, Poland Piotr Zylan the jumpsuit is particularly memorable.
– It’s quite a good-looking overall. If the costume meets the rules, it is indeed a master who has been able to make such a costume. There are a few athletes who have repeated the same thing from race to race.
5. What about Finns?
When talking about Finnish ski jumpers, there is hope in the air under every hill week. The first race weekend of the season was particularly difficult for the Finns.
Since then, Antti Aalto and Niko Kytösaho have been able to score some points.
– They should be second-round men from one season to the next. Even if you make it to the second round, the rankings should not be among the 20-30, but closer to the group of 15 best athletes.
Eetu Nousiainen came to pick up speed again from the Continental Cup.
– There, things immediately started to open up a bit. Maintaining that direction in the World Cup would be important. The qualifying places are important for Vilho. If he makes it to the race from every qualifier, the mountain week will be a plus.