As of: 03/27/2022 4:43 p.m
Exactly 250 times Severin Freund plunged into the depths in the Ski Jumping World Cup. His impressive career ends on Sunday (03/27/2022).
Celebrated in Planica Severin Freund one of his greatest successes – the 33-year-old also had his last flight as a ski jumper on the Monsterschanze in Slovenia. With a The career of the longtime top jumper ended with a distance of 215 meters on Sunday at Letalnica.
Friend: “I couldn’t think of a goal anymore”
The end of Bayern’s career became known on Sunday shortly before the season finale in the sports show. After his last jump, Freund said: “It wasn’t the easiest day. You try to do the normal things, but you can tell when you warm up that it’s a bit different.”
The thought of resigning had only occurred to him in the past few weeks, said Freund in the sports show, “when the questions came about how things would go with me,” he explained. Regarding the reasons for the resignation, he said: “Then I asked myself, if you continue, then for what? Just like last year with Oberstdorf and this year with Vikersund, I have no further goal. And then you know that in two weeks you wouldn’t give 100 percent in the weight room,” said Freund, adding with a smile: “Now is the right time. Thank you.”
250 World Cup competitions
In the sunshine of the Julian Alps, an impressive ski jumping career came to an end after exactly 250 World Cup competitions, 14 World Championships and three Olympics.
Eisenbichler: “I have to shed tears”
Freund’s teammates and national coach Stefan Horngacher regretted the resignation – but also expressed understanding for the step: “I learned a lot from him. I had to shed a few tears yesterday and now I have to shed tears too,” said Markus Eisenbichler, who found out about the end of his career on Saturday evening. “We said goodbye to a big one with Severin.”
Olympic Gold 2014 – Overall World Cup 2015
Between 2011 and around 2016, the Rastbüchler was the best German ski jumper. During this time he celebrated Olympic gold in 2014 with the team, the world titles on the large hill (2015) and in ski flying (2014), won the overall World Cup in 2015 and finished second at the Four Hills Tournament 2015/2016, his best result.
Many injuries from 2017
After that, the career of the Munich-based show jumper was repeatedly interrupted by injuries and operations. He suffered the worst injury in January 2017: he tore his cruciate ligament during training. After healing, a second cruciate ligament tear followed in July 2017. Freund missed the 2018 Olympics and only returned to the World Cup for the 2018/2019 season.
Due to another knee operation, he missed the 2019 World Championships. In the meantime Freund started in the Continental Cup, but fought his way back into the World Cup in the 2021/22 season. His last major success was at the beginning of March when he won silver with the German team at the Ski Flying World Championships in Vikersund.
Geiger: “It was always good for the team”
For Karl Geiger, who flew to Germany’s successes in the recent past, Freund was “my role model for many years, I was able to learn an awful lot from him, he was always good for the team and always supported us. We will miss him”, said the 29-year-old in the sports show: “He had had an incredible career. It’s also incredible what he’s done in recent years after his injuries, I can only say chapeau.”
Geiger not (yet) following in Freund’s footsteps
Almost had friend with Karl Geiger in Planica also his legitimate successor in the German team to the overall World Cup victory may congratulate. But the current German flagship aircraft was able to prove itself on the Letalnica not be crowned overall World Cup winner.
Horngacher: “Took a lot with him”
Like Geiger, national coach Horngacher also emphasized the team player abilities of the Munich-based Rastbüchler: “I really appreciate Severin as a person, I really appreciate him as an athlete. He exemplified how you live as a top athlete, how you approach things. He has there took many other athletes with him. He was the calming influence in our team. He helped a lot in the communication between athletes and coaches,” said the Austrian in the sports show.
Schmid: “I will miss him”
Teammate Constantin Schmid was not surprised by the decision. But Severin Freund will “tear a big gap in the team – personally and also in terms of sport. I appreciate him very much and yes, I will miss him!”
friend and friday
After the era of Sven Hannawald and Martin Schmidt and before the success of Karl Geiger and Markus Eisenbichler, it was Severin Freund and he too recently resigned Richard Freitagwho kept German ski jumping alive.
“It was beautiful” – What’s next?
The German Ski Association hopes that Freund will remain involved in the sport in the future. But the current ski jumping pensioner wants to take the time to “take a deep breath, spend time with the family”. He can only say this much about his future: “I was a 100 percent athlete and have done so to this day. Now a new chapter will come, I can’t say what it looks like.” But at least he can say so much: “I’m incredibly satisfied and very proud and grateful. It was beautiful.”
Source: sportschau.de