Walter Hofer ©Horst Nilgen
When and how did you become conscious of the need to change the philosophy of every jumper using the same inrun during a round?
Walter Hofer: We held a number of events during the season – Kulm, Vancouver, Oberstdorf, Lillehammer – which we got through with a queasy feeling in our stomachs. Horst Nilgen, FIS Media Coordinator, said to me in Vikersund: “This can’t go on any further. You must think of something”. His words were a signal, as Nilgen looks at the system from the outside, but is also aware of what is happening within the ski jumping scene. At any rate, this comment was the final justification for me to discuss this matter with the FIS Jumping Committee.
What further steps were taken?
WH: We got the necessary persons in touch with each other: Hans-Heini Gasser from the Sub-Committee on Jumping Hills, who makes the hill calculations; FIS Ski Jumping expert Prof. Gerhard Hochmuth; hill constructor Wolfgang Happle; Assistant Race Director Miran Tepes; Enrico Richter from Swiss Timing Data Service and others. At the same time, I spoke to Dieter Thoma and Andreas Goldberger, as we wanted to hear the opinions of former ski jumpers who are now TV commentators on our new plans. Both were enthusiastic.
What was the feedback from the FIS Ski Jumping and Nordic Combined Committees at the beginning of April?
WH: Both groups were in favor of tests during the summer, but also mentioned a full range of “ifs” and “buts”. It will be particularly important to see if the new points system will raise transparency for the public.
The trainer tower should be the main base for coaches so that they can decide on the inrun for their athletes.
WH: Yes, though it has been made clear that there will be no increase in start platform changes. We believe that the trainers will get involved maybe three or four times during the 30 competitions. The jury will get more negotiation space in extreme situations thanks to the new rules and can move the bar up and down, while trainers can only shorten the inrun. The luck factor will be more controllable. In addition, we are considering preventing trainers from making changes to avoid delays if weather conditions dictate it – e.g. snowfall. Thus, we can avoid possible irritations from getting in the way of a round. It is also clear that the new system cannot compensate for different conditions on the inrun. When, for example, the inrun is slower due to snowfall, we simply cannot lengthen it, as the athlete would be automatically put at a disadvantage, according to our mathematical formula.
Do you think that these rule changes will be used in winter?
WH: We aren’t expecting anything at the moment. We are testing these changes in the summer, are doing our field trials, and hope to gain new insights through this. Maybe, there will be a partial alteration in the current World Cup regulations, or maybe we will throw the new rules out. We only know it would be a great leap forward – at least on paper — in terms of safety and fairness in Ski Jumping.
Contributed by Egon Theiner & Horst Nilgen