In our interview series "FIS Ski Jumping-Talk" we present interviews with ski jumping athletes and officials. Today: Andreas Wellinger (20).

Andreas Wellinger made his debut in the World Cup already at age 17, at age 18 he won Olympic gold in the team competition in Sochi together with Severin Freund, Marinus Kraus and Andreas Wank. Shortly before that, the Bavarian took his first and so far only World Cup win in Wisla. 2013 he won three competitions in the FIS Grand Prix and the overall title of this series.

After a promising start of the last winter with a third place in Klingenthal, Wellinger fell in Kuusamo and suffered serious bruises. Despite this crash, he won silver in the individual and the team competition at the Junior World Championships in Almaty.

FIS Ski Jumping: Andreas, how was your summer? How satisfied are you with the preparation for the new season?

Andreas Wellinger: I'm very satisfied. Everything went according to plan. We had very good conditions almost the whole time, also for the final jumps in Oberstdorf. Now we are looking forward to the start of the season.

FIS Ski Jumping: What about last season with the crash in Kuusamo? Does this experience still play a role?

Wellinger: No, this is over. Of course it was not very easy. Fortunately I was able to start jumping again after only two months. I could compete in the World Championships as well as the Junior World Championships. So this was already behind me. I also had some pretty good results afterwards. After my final exams in school I could focus on the sport even more.

FIS Ski Jumping: What difference does it make for you that you can now fully focus on the sport and don't have to worry about school?

Wellinger: This is a big difference. It's a lot easier because there's a lot less stress without this double challenge. I don't have to take my school stuff with me anymore (laughs). It's a lot less mental stress and I'm grateful that I can now pursue the sport under such professional conditions in the ski team of the customs administration.

FIS Ski Jumping: Was it maybe also a positive aspect that you had a certain distraction from the sport because of school? Did you already start looking for an alternative?

Wellinger: That's true, from time to time it was a good thing. But I don't really need that much distraction. When we are traveling, there's always a good spirit in the team, we like to play cards or watch movies together. So it's definitely not boring. Of course I've also thought about starting to study. I don't know yet when and what. It's an idea for next year.

FIS Ski Jumping: Do you already have an idea what you want to study? Business or sports?

Wellinger: Definitely one of these, as a correspondence course. The life is not over after the career in sports and I want to lay the foundation for this time now.

FIS Ski Jumping: It's only a few days until the qualification in Klingenthal. How will you spend this time? Will you be jumping again or is it time to relax?

Wellinger: We made the last jumps last week. We will take things a bit easier now, we will only be working a bit on the strength and fitness. And of course we try to direct the focus on the winter now, even if the temperatures are not very winterly yet.

FIS Ski Jumping: You will probably have positive memories of Klingenthal. You won a Grand Prix there and last winter you were on the podium in the World Cup opening. How high is the anticipation to compete there again?

Wellinger: We have been training for a long time and now we are looking forward to competing with an international field again. It's always special to jump in front of the home crowd. It's a privilege, that we can start the season in Klingenthal. It's a short trip, many fans will be supporting us. It's about time that the season starts (laughs).

FIS Ski Jumping: It will be exactly 121 days from the qualification in Klingenthal until the final in Planica. 38 competitions will be held during this period of time. How high is the physical strain for you as an athlete?

Wellinger: It's a very long and intense season with lots of exhausting trips. It's imporant that you pace yourself and remain focused. Then you also need to take time to relax and regenerate, expecially during stressful times. It will be a challenge for everyone. We will see who can handle it best.

FIS Ski Jumping: Did you already set a specific goal for yourself this season?

Wellinger: I don't have a goal in terms of a particular result. I want to jump consistently during the whole season. In the past years I always had some setbacks, the performances got worse at some point. This time I want to be consistent for the whole winter until the very last competition. Then we'll see where I stand. 50 athletes participate in every competition and all of them want to win. A lot has to go right for you to be on top. I'm convinced that we Germans will be fighting for the win in many competitions.

FIS Ski Jumping: Winning the Nation's Cup was a huge success for the team last year. Is defending this title a goal this season?

Wellinger: We spoke about it briefly during our last camp. I'm sure that we are capable of winning it again. We trained very well, hopefully everyone will be able to show good performances. Probably the same nations will be fighting for this title again. We are one of them. But there are many factors, who have to be in your favor during the course of a long season.

FIS Ski Jumping: With Severin Freund you probably have the world's best ski jumper on your team. How motivating is it for the rest of the team that you can constantly compare yourself with him?

Wellinger: It's extremely motivating. This comparison is very important. You always know where you stand. At the Ski Flying World Championships we will have an additional quota spot because he won the title two years ago. This is a great situation. It's a privilege that he earned this for the team and we want to make use of it.

FIS Ski Jumping: The Austrians had a great streak at the 4-Hills-Tournament recently. How optimistic are you that there might be a German winner again in the near future?

Wellinger: I'm convinced that this will happen sooner or later. You can train for it as much as you want, there's still no guarantee for success. The bottom line is that the cards will be reshuffled with the first jump. Ten to 15 athletes will be fighting for the overall title. It's a difficult task, eveything has to work well for eight jumps. We will see when it happens. Because: You can't win the 4-Hills with one good jump, but you can lose it with one bad jump. We will do our best.

FIS Ski Jumping: Is there a competition or a hill that you are especially looking forward to next winter?

Wellinger: I'm really looking forward to the Ski Flying World Championships. I could already participate in Harrachov two years ago, but so far I didn't experience any outstanding flights. But I think that I could further develop my style of jumping and that I became a bit more of a ski flyer. Of course we want to show a strong performance as a team, Severin would also like to defend his title. It will be an exciting time. Especially because it's going to be a long period of time, from the 4-Hills, to Willingen and then to Ski Flying Worlds, during which you have to jump on a high level.

FIS Ski Jumping: Last question: Is there a headline that you would like to read about yourself one day?

Wellinger: Well, good question (laughs). "Wellinger is the world's best ski jumper" would definitely be nice to read. But it's not that easy (laughs). The competition is very close and on an extremely high level. I will try to get to the top. We will have the first competition in Klingenthal and there we'll see where the best of the world stand. Then we'll see where we and I are landing (laughs).

FIS Ski Jumping: Thanks for the interview and all the best for the upcoming winter.

Source: fis-ski.com