The third jump of the Four Hills Tournament is taking place in Innsbruck. Two Germans want to overthrow the dominator.
Has the chance for Philipp Raimund and Felix Hoffmann to make a big coup at the Four Hills Tournament finally arrived? The chances for a victory seem to have increased before the jump in Innsbruck (from 1:30 PM in the ticker). Because dominator Domen Prevc from Slovenia only finished 30th in qualification and therefore has to start early in the first round.
In the previous jumps in Oberstdorf and Garmisch-Patenkirchen, the star won convincingly.
The best German in qualification was Hoffmann in fifth place. Philipp Raimund (16th) caused a moment of fright when he crashed into a barrier at too high speed, which then broke. Raimund, however, was able to laugh again a little later.
Austria’s Jan Hörl, Prevc’s fiercest pursuer in the battle for the overall victory of the Four Hills Tournament, won the preliminary round with 128.0 m ahead of three other Austrians.
Big opportunities arise for Raimund and Hoffmann before the competitions in Austria. Both are within direct reach of the tournament podium. Hoffmann is in fourth place in the ranking after two hills and is only 4.9 points behind third-placed Stephan Embacher.
Philipp Raimund (l.) and Felix Hoffmann have their eyes firmly on the tournament podium
Raimund, in sixth place, is also only 11.7 points behind the young Austrian in the bronze position.
In the four individual jumps of the Four Hills Tournament, the first round is not contested in the classic mode: instead, there are 25 knockout duels, in which the respective winners and the five best losers qualify for the second round. The pairings result from the placements in qualification.
After the jump in Innsbruck, the competition continues in Bischofshofen. Whoever has collected the most points after the four jumps wins the Four Hills Tournament.