Four Hills Tournament: Raimund shines in Oberstdorf qualifying — Geiger out

Philipp Raimund delivered the standout German performance in qualifying for the Four Hills Tournament opener in Oberstdorf, finishing second behind Slovenia’s overall World Cup leader and season dominator, Domen Prevc. Raimund, competing at home for SC Oberstdorf, flew 132.5 meters and was 10.7 points back of Prevc, who led the field with 139.5 meters. Austria’s Daniel Tschofenig, last year’s overall Four Hills winner, placed third.

Raimund called the atmosphere “wonderful,” noting the thrill of jumping well in front of a packed crowd. Despite Germany labeling themselves “outsider favorites” for this 74th edition of the tour, Raimund’s form raises hopes heading into Monday night’s main event.

Six of nine Germans qualified for the competition: Philipp Raimund, Felix Hoffmann, Pius Paschke, Andreas Wellinger, Constantin Schmid, and Luca Roth. In a surprise, local favorite Karl Geiger missed the cut in 53rd despite recent training and a brief World Cup break, calling the result “bitter.”

The KO pairings for the German athletes at the Oberstdorf opener are: - Philipp Raimund (2) vs. Junshiro Kobayashi (49) - Felix Hoffmann (12) vs. Andreas Wellinger (39) - Pius Paschke (21) vs. Robin Pedersen (30) - Constantin Schmid (44) vs. Ryoyu Kobayashi (7) - Luca Roth (46) vs. Jan Hörl (5)

Head coach Stefan Horngacher noted Germany has little to lose this year, with no German among the top overall favorites for the Golden Eagle, unlike some previous seasons dominated by Wellinger, Paschke, or Geiger.