In the Nordic region of the ÖSV, hardly one stone remains after another – one year before the World Championships in Seefeld. ÖSV President Peter Schröcksnadel announced at a press conference on Tuesday that Heinz Kuttin, the head coach of ski jumping, who is in serious trouble, will stop. And former combiner Mario Stecher succeeds Ernst Vettori.
Schröcksnadel emphasized that Kuttin wanted to quit his job on his own initiative. “I’m sorry,” said the president. And Schröcksnadel expressed understanding for the step of the Carinthian, who had been heavily criticized after the past, messed up season without a World Cup victory and Olympic medals.
On Easter weekend, he told him of the “whole defamation” that his family had also been “attacked”. “Some people are just more sensitive. I ask the media to take this into account,” said Schröcksnadel. And the president also criticized “ex-employees” of the ÖSV, who had “handed in criticisms” in public and only wanted to settle old bills. This is “not a nice thing,” says Schröcksnadel.
The ÖSV did not yet have a successor for Kuttin on Tuesday. The talks are only just beginning, said the new Sports Director for Jumping and Nordic Combined, Mario Stecher. There are “three or four candidates,” he told APA. Stecher apparently strives for an Austrian solution by first trying to find a candidate “in his own field”. Trainers working abroad, such as Alexander Stöckl, who trains the Norwegians very successfully, would not be an option, the Styrian referred to Stöckl’s long-term contract.
In view of the poor season, “mistakes clearly happened” in the jumping area, said the 40-year-old. “You have to get the entire team enthusiastic about the sport,” said Stecher, setting the goal. “I want to strengthen the sense of togetherness,” said the combiner, who resigned in 2015. He wanted to “set a clear line – down to the next generation”. The claim of the local eagles is of course to win “some medals” at the coming major events. “In any case, we have to’back to the basics'”, said Stecher, who saw his new task as a “special challenge”. It is very important that every athlete “starts with himself”. In any case, Schröcksnadel called it a “very good choice”.
His predecessor Vettori had long felt that he wanted to “change”, said Schröcksnadel, who thanked the “Ernstl” for the “many good years of cooperation”. This was also confirmed by the former world-class jumper, who had been in office since 2010: He had already spoken to his wife last autumn about this step. “I have worked with passion all this time,” said Vettori. After consulting with his family, he finally came to the conclusion that he was changing. In this context, Schröcksnadel pointed to Vettori’s strenuous and stressful position.
In the last World Cup season, the Austrian ski jumpers were victorious for the first time since 2000/01 and for the third time ever. At the Olympics, the “Adler” remained without a medal – and that only one year after the flight of double world champion and overall World Cup winner Stefan Kraft.