SKI JUMPING. Hinterzarten is the cradle of summer ski jumping. The premiere took place in 1982 and since then the world's best ski jumpers came to the Black Forest every year for the FIS GP to compete on the "Adlerschanze" in summer temperatures.

Morgenstern can become record winner

And also this year the entry list at this most traditional summer competition looks presentable. Thomas Morgenstern, three-time Olympic Gold medalist and currently leading in the GP overall ranking, will attend, just like 66 other athletes from 17 nations.

With a victory in Sunday's individual competition, Morgenstern could equal the record of Austrian Andreas Felder, who won in Hinterzarten in 1983, 1986 and 1991. The last German winner was Georg Spaeth in 2008.

The spectators appreciate the possibility to be close to the jumpers and especially the chance to attend an event at a ski jumping hill with a t-shirt. During the heydays, when local hero Sven Hannawald dominated the scene, the number of spectators was enormous. That's not quite the case anymore, but the atmosphere, especially when the best Germans Severin Freund and Richard Freitag are jumping, will be great.

Hinterzarten as great test run

FIS race director Walter Hofer praised the organizers in an interview. Over the last 30 years Hinterzarten always served as a great trial run for the winter. Various changes of rules were tested here for the first time.

The qualification will take place at 5:00 pm CET on Friday, a team competition is held at 7:00 pm CET on Saturday before the individual competition will start at 2:00 pm CET on Sunday. The opening event of the weekend will be a soccer game with many celebrities on Thursday (6:30 pm). During half-time there will be the traditional penalty shootout between the German and Austrian jumpers.

FISskijumping.com
04.08.2011 09:47

Reconstruction in Oberstdorf making good progress

While the ski jumpers are competing in the FIS GP, a new HS 106 hill is built in Oberstdorf. That's why cranes are dominating the scenery in the Allgaeu-Arena right now.

The construction of the new facility is making good progress, as architect Alfred Sieber told in the newspaper "Allgaeuer Anzeigenblatt". So far everything went like clockwork", he told. In the past few days a the 55 m long and about 100-ton inrun was positioned at the site with big truck cranes.

Old facility not met the regulations

Late March the old inrun was disassambled, the hill did not meet the regulations of the International Ski Federation (FIS) anymore. The reconstruction costs about five million Euro and the expenses are shared between the federation, the state and the municipality.

Martin Schmalholz of the city administration said the the reconstruction of the inrun is a necessary investment. The construction is scheduled to be completed already in November, so the athletes in Oberstdorf shall be able to train on the normal hill again in winter. Over the last years, the normal hill in Oberstdorf was a very popular training hill. Also the training center in Oberstdorf is reliant on the facility.

FISskijumping.com
04.08.2011 07:51

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