Olympics and beyond: Gloomy outlook for German men's ski jumpers

Germany's Olympic men's ski jumping team is bracing itself for possibly no silverware at the Winter Olympics next month and a grim future overall.

German jumpers managed not aq single podium finish at the Four Hills Tour which ended on Thursday. Felix Hoffmann placed sixth overall and Philipp Raimund eighth, credible results but nothing to scare the top stars led by Four Hills winner Domen Prevc of Slovenia.

Coach Stefan Horngacher has little time to make amends as the ski flying world championships take place later in January on home ground in Oberstdorf and the Milan/Cortina Olympics follow February 6-22.

German men won a gold and two silvers at the 2018 Games and two bronze medals in 2022. The last Olympics without a medal was in 2006, also in Italy.

The deeper lying issue is that a huge gap has opened behind Hoffmann and Raimund, with former top jumpers struggling and no fresh talent in sight.

Andreas Wellinger, who got normal hill gold and large hill and team silver in 2018, as well as Karl Geiger, a five-time world champion who was also part of the 2018 team event and has large hill and team bronze from 2022, have completely lost their form.

None of the two made the top 30 at any of the four stops at the Four Hills. In the past they would have likely been removed from the team during the Tour but now there are no alternatives to take their place.

"This concerns us enormously - including me in my function. It can not satisfy us," sporting director Horst Hüttel said.

"We must see that we improve the situation as quickly as possible over the next years. The output coming from below is definitely not sufficient."

Wellinger highlighted that ski jumping requires a bigger effort than other sports like football or tennis but hopes that "winter sport is alive and that we can motivate children with what we are doing."

In the short term, meanwhile, a competition change has slightly raised German hopes for Olympic silverware.

There will be no team event with four jumpers as in the past but a super team competition with just two jumpers per nation, where Hoffmann and Raimund may deliver.