Q&A WITH SKI JUMPING EXPERT MARTIN SCHMITT

Contenders for 2022-23 Season
Who do you think will be in contention to win the Crystal Globe this season?
I think Ryoyu Kobayashi is very strong. He should be strong. Dawid Kubacki has improved his flightstyle, he has a better flight position than he had in the last few years - he had good results in the Summer Grand Prix in his mind and should have confidence for the winter. There are three jumpers in the German team who I think have the possibility to reach a podium, you have the Slovenian and Norwegian guys, the Austrians. There are so many – this weekend we will know more. Actually, we will know on the first training.

Do you think we’ll have the same ski jumpers like Ryoyu and Carl Geiger competing at the top competing for the top or will we have new contenders?
You never know, it's hard to predict before the season starts. I think there are several jumpers who have the ability to reach the podium and to win competitions. You can see in the summer that Ryoyu is still in good shape. For the season, David Kubacki jumped great and we know that the Polish team is very strong and then you have the Norwegians. Marius Lindvik, Daniel Andre Tande and Halvor Egner Granerud are on a higher level. They will be probably quite strong. Also the German team is, I think, is prepared for the season. The Austrians too.  It's hard to predict but I think with the results in summer in mind, especially in Wisla in front of the home crowd - I expect the Polish team to be very strong.

Who are your top three choices for the overall World Cup this season?
I think Ryoyu Kobayashi, second David Kubicki and third… anybody!

For five of the last seven seasons, German ski jumpers have finished in second place overall – is this a coincidence?
I think they can do it this year as well. I think it shows that the Germans have a strong team. Last year, Carl Geiger was the best on the hill, also Markus Eisenbichler was always a man for the podium. There is always one guy who is better and that’s how it is in sports. I think this year Andy Wellinger will be among the best ski jumpers and I think maybe their chances rise because there's three jumpers now on a high level and in ski jumping not everything is predictable. You need to get this flow in the season and you need to get full confidence of your jumping technique, you need to get results at the beginning of the season and reach the highest level - you cannot work yourself to this highest level - you must make it happen.

Could David Kubacki be among the favourites for the World Cup?
I agree, I think it could be a great season for him because he improved a lot in the flight so it's a totally different style. His technique is better, we know he always had a strong take-off. He still has it, but he improved a lot in flight. For sure we have to wait to see some of the new things this season, the material with the suits this season for example. There were a few adjustments to the rules in autumn and so we have just we have to wait and see how the different jumpers can handle this and who gets the best out of it. But I think David is very well prepared for the season.

Ski Jumping today
How do you see the evolution of all technical and technological aspects of the sport?
I think that since I stopped that, of course there have been some changes to the rules. Take-off is pretty much the same, maybe a bit more aggressive than in than in my last years of competition. Because the shoes now allow you to make a more aggressive take-off and a more aggressive first flight phase, so the take-off changed a bit so you can be a bit more aggressive and it's really important to get the perfect stable flight position as quickly as possible. In the flight, probably the most the biggest change is that your feet are further apart so that's a bit different to ski jumping in my career.

If you were to recommend a fan or tourists travelling to one particular World Cup competition, which would it be and why?
As a German I need to give you the best advice to go to a competition in Germany! You have to go to the Four Hills and I would go to the opening competion at Oberstdorf. It’s an evening competition, a specia atmosphere, and it’s always crowded with the stadiums loud and noisy. For me, it’s the best place to go.


Martin Schmitt and Ski jumping
When you were starting out as a ski jumper, did you think you’d have as much success as you eventually did?
I dreamed about it, of course, but I would never expect to win World Cup competitions – as a kid you you try to imagine how it is to win a World Cup competition during practice with my friends on the hill. We would watch the World Cup before. We would all pretend to be our heroes, I was actually Jan Boklöv. I really adapted in a time when Boklov was just a freestyle jumper, I would always get a point deductions from the judges. I improved my flight style as a young kid and so it was good for me to follow the footsteps of Jan Boklöv.

What does it take to make a great ski jumper?
Physically, you need to need to be powerful to get a good jump because it needs to be very explosive from the take-off. Of course, we need to be very, very lightweight. So not much bodyweight but still have enough power in your legs to perform a powerful take-off.

Who were your main inspirations while building a career in ski jumping?
My main inspirations I had as a young kid Matti Nykänen from Finland. He was an amazing ski jumper and he was so successful and had a special style. He was my big hero as a kid. Later on, in Germany, it was Dieter Thoma. When I came into the World Cup team, he was my bigger brother in the team, and he took care of me and showed me showed me how to do it.

Why should people who aren’t super-fans should start watching ski jumping?
I think ski jumping is very exciting, we come very close to the dream of flying. It's really nice to go down the inrun at high speed and take-off at 90km/h and then you move forward and you feel the skis, carrying you to the air. It's very, very, very thrilling.

Role with Warner Bros. Discovery
Tell us about your role working for Warner Bros. Discovery Sports and Eurosport.
I feel very good about it. I'm really looking forward to the season. It's going to be interesting and I like my role as an expert. But it's great to be around the ski jumping World Cup and to be still being involved and to talk about this sport I love.

The FIS Ski Jumping World Cup 2022-23 season will be available to watch on discovery+ (selected markets), Eurosport and Eurosport App across Europe, starting from the opening round in Wisla on Saturday 5 November