Hello Hurricane {English Translation}

4. Daniel - Oberstdorf - Day of qualification

"Anyway guys, remember: anything could happen, but nothing has to. Well, at least qualification should be ... well ... you know what I mean." Alex finished the day's motivational speech before they moved on to get ready for the first qualification of the Four Hills.

After a loud "Heia Norge", their battle cry before each competition, Alex said goodbye to them and left the cabin, and a lively, but rather hectic bustle began. Each of them had different rituals before jumping, which they worked through as though they were on a to-do list. Sometimes athletes were strange beings.

That also ensured that a funny, chaotic-looking, but nevertheless harmonious coexistence arose. Everyone was busy with themselves, because now the real work began. The focus on that one jump, which would hopefully give them a good starting position: a feasible knockout duel.

Since Daniel would jump later than the others, seeing as he was placed much higher in the overall World Cup, he left the container to give his teammates a little space. He would do two or three more imitation exercises instead, and if there was still time, jog a little to keep himself and his joints warm.

Outside in the fresh air, he began to stretch and absorb the tournament feeling that anticipated him. Everywhere, the air crackled with tension and great expectations. As the saying went, you couldn't win the tournament in Oberstdorf, but you could lose it. And this knowledge, the special format, created this specific atmosphere every year during the Four Hills.

This year, for the first time in his career, he was counted among the favorites, in addition to five other jumpers. They all belonged to the world's elite and this feeling, this knowledge, inspired him. He felt like nothing could go wrong. He just had to do his job. Just jump well and he would have a chance. He loved the competition. He was good at it. And he knew the rules of the game.

Daniel came close to the German team, who were warming up with a game of volleyball, and began with some of his stretching exercises. Meanwhile, he had a good look at the noise around him. Stefan Kraft, greeting him, ran past into the Austrians' wax cabin, while the first Kazakh packed his things to slowly make his way up. There was still some time, but as mentioned, everyone had different rituals and for some of them, the slow walk up to the hill was one of them.

As he began to stretch his leg and perform various exercises, he saw how the Slovenians' container door was thrown open. None other than the overall World Cup leader himself stomped out, seemingly absorbed in a conversation with his supervisor. Gesturing wildly, Domen tried to make his counterpart understand something. Obviously Domen's supervisor didn't seem too pleased with his theory, and shook his head. Loudly, he began to explain something.

Daniel had followed the youngster's jumps in the test rounds, which had been characterized by significant difficulties in the jump transition. If he interpreted Domen's gestures correctly, then that was exactly what they were discussing. The Slovenians took one of the rolling boards which Domen was approaching, and began imitating the transition. Spellbound, Daniel kept his eyes on the Slovenian as he switched from the left leg to the right. Through this exercise, you could already see the steep slope of the Slovenian between his imaginary skis. It was as if he could somehow bend his feet. It was absolutely fascinating and graceful, the way Domen seemed to keep his body tension focused on what lay beneath him. He just made it look so easy. Domen gave off unbounded energy. Fire, that-

"I would stop that."

"What?" Daniel turned around, startled. Anders had approached him unnoticed, and began stretching exercises.

"Watching the little Prevc." He nodded towards the person who had magically attracted Daniel's eyes.

"What?!" Daniel repeated mechanically as his head began to spin. Had he just betrayed himself? Was he really so spaced out that he didn't notice? What should he do now? Everyone would know and-