Andreas Wellinger won the gold medal in ski jumping at the Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang on Saturday.
Afterwards, the DSV eagle crashed it. In an interview, the 22-year-old talks about the Gold Party, the emotions of national coach Werner Schuster and the explosion of his mobile phone.
Question: Mr. Wellinger, how was the party after her Olympic victory?
Andreas Wellinger: Very nice. We’ll be home by 5:00. At least, I think so. Beating the champagne bottle with Laura Dahlmeier on stage was a lot of fun.
Question: Olympic champion – can you believe it?
Wellinger: No, and that will take days or weeks. If I think about it, I could cry all the time. My name is now next to a gold medal. I can’t believe it.
Question: How did you experience the moment when gold was safe?
Wellinger: The others realized it before me. My head was empty, my body was full of adrenaline, and then the tears gushed out. You can’t think like that. These are moments you will never forget.
Question: Was the second jump perfect?
Wellinger: When I see the jump here on the screen, everything comes up again, even if it wasn’t that long ago. The way my cell phone exploded afterwards, I exploded on the hill.
Question: Has a dream come true?
Wellinger: Every competitive athlete wants to be at the top of the Olympics. When I was at the top of the qualifying table, I knew I could fight. It’s a childhood dream come true.
Question: Have you seen the jubilation of national coach Werner Schuster?
Wellinger: Yes. Did he dislocate his shoulder when he pulled his arm up? I think he knew I could jump with him over there. That’s a tremendous success for him too, for the whole team.
Question: The first congratulator was Markus Eisenbichler….
Wellinger: Eisei and I have been together since childhood, grew up together in the boarding school, always have bullshit outside the hill. It’s nice to have teammates like that.
Question: Is it true that you followed Laura Dahlmeier’s gold run before the race?
Wellinger: Before rehearsing, I took my skis out of the cabin from the technician. That’s when I saw how Laura was broken, but happy on the ground. She had a 24-second head start – I knew it would be something.
Question: Can you compare your victory to team gold in Sochi?
Wellinger: Not really. At that time I was an 18-year-old, but I didn’t take on such expectations. Today I’m on my own and I only have two jumps.
Question: Now it’s on the big hill. What’s possible?
Wellinger: We’ll see how I feel when I get back on the hill. I can show very good jumps, that’s what I want from the Großschanze.