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The German toboggan hopes rest on him: Felix Loch
Photo:
Florian Schroetter / AP
Abandoned by luck and by his mentor Georg Hackl, Felix Loch sat in the Innsbruck ice rink: the three-time Olympic champion was unable to counter the dominance of the Austrian lugers at the World Cup opener in Innsbruck.
In the very first race of the new season, Loch suffered a setback in the Olympic ice track.
After a mixed first run, he fell in the second on the approach to turn 14.
Host Austria celebrated a quadruple victory under the eyes of the new coach Hackl: Nico Gleirscher won ahead of Wolfgang Kindl, Jonas Müller and David Gleirscher.
Hackl, Germany's long-standing coach and material developer, changed sides in the summer.
But he didn't want to overestimate the success at the start: "It was just a home World Cup at the start that went well and happily," said Hackl on ARD.
»But that is also very surprising for me.
I knew that we had top people in every discipline, but I didn't expect it to work out with this level of performance.«
The German tobogganists are spoiled for success – actually
Because whether in men, women or in both doubles categories: Victory always went to Austria.
A damper for the German team after the medal spectacle in Beijing.
It became particularly clear on Sunday.
Loch was already hopelessly behind after the first run in sixth place.
Best German: 19-year-old World Cup debutant Timon Grancagnolo in seventh place.
Olympic champion Johannes Ludwig was missing.
He had ended his career after the triumph in Beijing.
The German hopes therefore rest primarily on Loch.
However, the 33-year-old record world champion did not win a World Cup last winter and finished fourth at the Olympics, missing the podium.
Germany's record winter Olympian Natalie Geisenberger (six times gold) was also missing, she is expecting her second child.
Austria wants to continue attacking
Loch looked battered after his fall, but left the ice channel on his own.
"Of course you suffer too," said Hackl, "Felix is a good friend."
As a coach, Hackl was a mentor, especially for Loch.
Now Austria should help to overtake Germany as a toboggan superpower and become number one, said Markus Prock, President of the Austrian Association.
However, Innsbruck was a home game, the Austrians traditionally look good here, even if they are rarely that strong.
In addition, the material is being developed over the long term, Hackl's influence is likely to be quite superficial at the start of winter.
Nevertheless, it is a warning signal for the German athletes.
At the upcoming overseas World Cups in Whistler, Canada, and on the US track in Park City, neither team has a fundamental advantage, there should be a clearer performance profile here.
The Germans won't be on their home tracks until late this winter: the World Championships will take place in Oberhof at the end of January, followed by a World Cup in Altenberg and two in Winterberg.
ngo/dpa/sid