The World Cup sixth usually has its problems under control – he did not want to take any risk on the giant hill.
Philipp Raimund is a ski jumper, one of the world’s best. The World Cup sixth from Oberstdorf suffers from fear of heights – and therefore, on Thursday, a start in the qualification for ski flying from the giant bakers in the Slovenian Planica.
“I usually have this under control, and normally it is not a problem with ski jumping,” said the 24-year-old on social media: “However, from time to time I have the case, especially when skiing, that my body reacts without influencing it. Then I lose control for one and a half seconds and can only observe myself while I am being held in a claw.”
Raimund also dispenses with the team competition
Although “95 percent of my jumps” are not influenced, Raimund does not want to take any risk in Planica, “if I don’t know whether I am still the pilot or at least can react.”
The two-time junior world champion will not take part in the first individual fly on Friday (3 p.m.) and will also do without the team competition on Saturday. In any case, Markus Eisenbichler is likely to be used there and contest his last competition – unless he will go to the top 30 of the overall World Cup on Friday through an outstanding result on Friday and will then be able to do the best of the year on Sunday.
He left open whether Raimund will start at the World Cup final on Sunday: “Usually I want to go back to the ski jump when I watch others jumping,” he said: “Hopefully it will run that time. And if not, it is just like that.”