On Saturday he took fourth place in the Olympic individual competition on the large hill in Zhangjiakou. After the competition, the three-time Olympic champion wept as he wished he could make it to the podium. Marius Lindvik and Ryoyu Kobayashi clearly overtook Stoch. But the third one was better by only 4.1 points.
Will Stoch get his emotions under control and will gather again at the Olympics to fight for a medal? After two successful individual starts (he was sixth on the normal hill), he will now be the leader of Poland in the team competition. The competition will take place on Monday at 12 noon, live coverage on Sport.pl. Our team will be composed of:,,, Kamil Stoch.
£ ukasz Jachimiak: How is Kamil doing?
Bronis³aw Stoch: It’s better. He had to react to this fourth place, he had to vent his emotions and sadness. He needed to clean his head. He poured out his emotions in the form of tears. But it wasn’t despair. It was sadness. He had a right to such a reaction because he was literally a haircut from a great success. And it is such a success that – looking at the course of the season – we did not have to expect from it.
On January 12 he sprained his ankle, and on February 12 he almost won an Olympic medal. This is an impressive return.
– Yes. We saw how many mittens there were this season. And yet six months earlier, Kamil had surgery. Gathering it all, looking comprehensively, you have to take off your hat in front of Kamil, bow and say: “well, boy, you jumped out of the sky”. After all, he returned to the fight for medals almost from non-existence. And it did a great result.
People who have been observing Kamil’s career for years are probably reminded of how during M¦ 2013 he cried after the first competition, because he missed a medal, and five days later he became the world champion. But now he only has two days to qualify for the team. He will do it?
– He will pick himself up because – as I say – his crying was not a symptom of a nervous breakdown, it did not indicate any stronger crisis or psychological turbulence. It was an ordinary, natural reaction. Kamil deserved this crying. Thanks to this, he was relieved. Let’s face it, it did not hurt anyone, and it helped Kamil to close one chapter and move on to the next.
Have you seen the Karl Geiger suit?
– I saw it, but I don’t go into it. The coach said nicely – that if Kamil hit the threshold, the rivals could jump even with parachutes and it would not do them any good.
And what do you feel when you observe people’s reactions after Kamil’s fourth place? Surely you watched the talks with Kamil, you probably read the articles or maybe the fans’ comments?
– I’m glad I don’t see hysteria in general. Although I don’t like some things.
What? Do you think that it is not appropriate to go with the camera where the player is losing? It is not appropriate to show how a friend hugs him, trying to cheer him up? There is a storm on the Internet about such TVP material (more about which you can read here >>)
– It is already acting on strength. Like paparazzi. Certain limits cannot be exceeded. One must always be classy. I would like journalists to be role models in providing reliable information and to present attitudes at the highest level. There are journalists I value and some I don’t talk to. But let’s leave that as well. We are not going to be hot. Let everyone present what they can, and people can distinguish some things, appreciate some and not others. People can value. That’s why I leave people to judge.
The games are still going on, on Monday our team will fight for the medal, but regardless of whether or not it wins it, regardless of whether Kamil leaves Beijing with a prize, a thought will certainly appear in us at any moment, That if he has picked up after all these adventures, maybe in a month he will fight for the gold of the world championship in flying. We will have a little hope that maybe he will become the second jumper after Matti Nykaenenie, who will win it all.
– These are natural desires. It’s good that they are in us. He is awake whenever he goes for good. Anyway, even when it is not good, hope also accompanies us. Then we feed on the desire to make things better. Of course, if someone starts to force calculations, if he starts imposing them on Kamil, it will not be good. Because it would have an impact on Kamil. It would increase tension and stress, it would burden him and the whole environment. Let’s talk about desires, we have the right. But let them be our personal, let’s not force them into any player.
Finally, let me just say that I personally hope that we will get emotional again on Monday. The jumps are amazing. Not quite spectacular, they can surprise with results.
Source: Sport
Tristin is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
