Adam Małysz Evaluates Polish Ski Jumpers’ Performance: Brief but Tough

Ski Jumping

Far from the top ten and facing significant challenges, the Polish ski jumpers have started the World Cup season poorly. Adam Małysz, the president of the Polish Ski Association, candidly evaluated the weekend performances in Lillehammer and announced discussions with Thomas Thurnbichler's coaching staff. The reaction is unlikely to please fans of the Polish team, but there is a glimmer of hope for improvement.

On Saturday and Sunday, three Poles managed to score points. On the first day, Pawel Wąsek was the best in 15th place, while Aleksander Zniszczoł and Dawid Kubacki finished within the third decade. The next day, Kamil Stoch filled in for Kubacki in the points, but all three did not crack the top twenty. Thus, we asked Adam Małysz for his assessment of the weekend’s performances by the jumpers coached by Thomas Thurnbichler (Stoch is working with Michal Dolezal). His response was brief and to the point: "A solid fail—two out of ten," said the PZN president, indicating a need for serious conversations with the Polish team staff.

One Positive Point Seen by Adam Małysz

"I was a bit worried because, in recent times, there wasn’t much comparison with others. The jumping technically looked decent, but it was clearly not enough. I hope it was just in Lillehammer that they faltered, and they will improve subsequently. However, given how it looks, the situation is not encouraging," Małysz admits.

The PZN president points out that, for instance, Kubacki, who performed decently during the training, disappointed in the competition. "Things are not looking good. After these initial competitions, I will definitely talk to the coaches and inquire what is going on," Małysz states while searching for positives.

Paweł Wąsek gave some hope during the second round on Saturday, when he advanced several places, but good news was hard to find.

Kamil Stoch and Dawid Kubacki “Flying Standing Still”

"With Aleksander Zniszczoł, it’s tricky, especially in tailwind conditions as his style is unique. Kamil and Dawid? They appear to lack speed in the latter flight phase. They fly almost as if they were standing still. They don’t seem to gain momentum coming off the takeoff ramp like the best, who maintain height and speed. It’s evident they leave the ramp and are pushed back more and more, and then boom, they land," notes Małysz.

The trouble is that not only the second phase of the flight fails; they start off slowly at the ramp. "I hope we can do something regarding the equipment. I’ve heard there is still much potential for gain there. A lot of suit testing was done over the summer, so I hope that when we know what the gap to the best is, we can respond accordingly," claims Małysz.

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