Ski Jumping: DSV-Adler Suffer Debacle in Willingen

The German ski jumping team (DSV-Adler) experienced a debacle at the world’s largest ski flying hill in Willingen on Saturday, 1 February 2025. In front of 23,500 spectators at the home World Cup, the team’s performance was disappointing and further deepened their ongoing form crisis just three weeks before the World Championships.

Only three of the eight qualified athletes managed to make it into the second round. Among those, Felix Hoffmann – who collected his first World Cup points of the season – was the best German, finishing 15th. Andreas Wellinger and Pius Paschke ended up in 17th and 27th place respectively, far off from any podium contention. Coach Stefan Horngacher lamented that, for the tenth time in an individual event, the team did not reach the podium. He noted that despite efforts to narrow the gap, the Germans were unable to improve their results.

Even Karl Geiger, previously a sign of rising form, faltered with a weak jump of 114.5 meters. In his own words, he expressed frustration over his performance despite showing promise in recent weeks. Other notable international figures included Tourneesieger Daniel Tschofenig, who secured his sixth win of the season with jumps of 135.5 and 142 meters (scoring 288.9 points), narrowly ahead of Slovenian Anze Lanisek (284.9 points) and Austrian Maximilian Ortner (275.9 points).

Additionally, Markus Eisenbichler and Stephan Leyhe failed to qualify for the second round after struggling in the qualification phase. Their disappointing results have now all but dashed their hopes for a World Championship appearance. Other Germans, including Constantin Schmid and Philipp Raimund, also did not manage to meet the required standard in this challenging contest, underscoring the team’s collective difficulties on the day.

The event in Willingen, which once saw successes by Geiger—who had celebrated his second win here six years ago—turned into a bitter reminder of the gap to the world’s elite. With ten German athletes present, and others missing out due to various setbacks (Luca Roth did not qualify and Adrian Tittel was disqualified for his suit), the day was marked by overall underperformance.