Unbelievable — who Maciej Kot compared Kacper Tomasiak to. He explains

Ski jumping

Every successive performance and the comments that follow only reinforce the impression that Kacper Tomasiak has nerves of steel. The 18-year-old placed eighth in Sunday’s World Cup event in Innsbruck — his fourth top‑10 result this season. “In some respects Kacper is similar to Piotr Żyła,” said Maciej Kot, surprising many with the comparison.

(Correspondence from Innsbruck)

Tomasiak recorded his fourth top‑10 of the season and his second consecutive top‑10 in the Four Hills stopovers — as in Garmisch‑Partenkirchen, he was eighth in Innsbruck. “There would surely be some individual mistakes, but overall I’m satisfied with this performance,” he summed up in his usual style.

As at earlier stops of the tournament, Bergisel was marked by a great atmosphere. Tomasiak admitted, however, that he hardly had time to focus on it.

“We don’t really have time to focus on that. You don’t really hear the music in the locker rooms. Only just before the jump, but then we focus on what we have to do, not on the show,” he said. It’s hard to imagine a statement that characterises Tomasiak better.

“When you try to jump above your maximum, you tense up and it gets even worse. You can’t exceed your maximum. Then it just stops working,” he added.

What the 18‑year‑old is talking about is not a revelation — in ski jumping it is basically part of the recipe for success. The difference is that Tomasiak actually jumps that way, without unnecessary tension.

“You always want more, but I manage to enjoy what I have and focus on maintaining it rather than chasing more,” he emphasised.

Tomasiak compared to… Piotr Żyła

Tomasiak makes a big impression on his teammates and has become, indisputably, a leader this season. “It is impressive. Not only for us Poles but also for foreign media, athletes and coaches. In recent years there have been few athletes who had such a successful first World Cup season. Of course Stephan Embacher is young too, but this is his third World Cup season so he had time to 'get used' to it. It’s nice to watch and I would certainly like to reach that level and compete as an equal,” said Maciej Kot.

The much more experienced jumper even compared the younger colleague to… Piotr Żyła. “In certain respects Kacper is similar to Piotrek, but on the other hand he is almost his opposite. I mean that Piotrek pushes certain things away, he does not worry. For him it’s important to get up there and make a good position. He has a plan to execute and whether there are 10,000 people or nobody, whether there was some fluor on the skis — it doesn’t matter. He has his own world and stays far in his own lane,” Kot said.

“This is not a case of ‘he caught it and now doesn’t know what’s happening and keeps doing it’. It’s a process. He understood how these jumps work, he found a good feel and from spring he repeated one pattern that began to function better for him — through the Continental Cup, the Summer Grand Prix and into the World Cup,” Kot added.

Source: Przegląd Sportowy Onet