Germany Chef de Mission Dr Karl Quade has sounded a notice of warning as he prepares for the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Video games.
Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, important absences and a scarcity of competitors occasions, Quade believes that matching the fifth place of the 2018 Video games is unrealistic.
“Will probably be very tough to repeat the success of PyeongChang,“ Dr Quade mentioned. “We hope to complete within the prime 10 of the medals rating. However forecasts usually are not simple.“
Germany have topped the Winter Paralympic desk twice this century, at Salt Lake Metropolis 2002 and Vancouver 2010. Their 20-strong group 4 years in the past have been fifth-best after amassing seven golds, eight silvers and 4 bronze.
This time spherical, 18 athletes have been picked together with 5 guides in Nordic Snowboarding and one accompanying skier in Alpine. 9 of them are Video games debutants and 7 are beneath 22.
Six-time Paralympian Andrea Eskau has pulled out on account of sick well being, whereas seven-time gold medallist Anna Schaffelhuber has retired.
“The scale of the group is the same as PyeongChang however we’ve no curling group and extra athletes in cross-country, biathlon and snowboard,” mentioned Dr Quade.
“The pandemic had a really huge impression on the game. In Germany solely the highest athletes had till the center of 2021 the likelihood to practise. A giant downside was the few competitions.
“I labored a few years along with Andrea Eskau so I understand how arduous it’s for her to overlook the Video games. Such a profitable and skilled athlete can’t be changed by the younger athletes. However these athletes will present that they should be chosen.”
Leaders of the pack
Andrea Rothfuss is probably the most skilled member of the squad, having competed in 4 earlier Winter Video games and gained 13 alpine snowboarding medals on this stage.
She took gold at Sochi 2014 within the standing slalom and has 9 silver and three bronze medals in complete, due primarily to the French phenomenon Marie Bochet.
Ⓒ Andrea Carloni for the IPC
Rothfuss’s teammate Anna-Lena Forster has simply completed the World Championships in Lillehammer because the extra profitable feminine skier with 4 titles and Quade believes she might be the catalyst for the remainder of the group.
“Anna-Lena is a frontrunner of the group, alongside Andrea. She (Anna Lena) conjures up younger athletes. Successful originally of the Video games conjures up the entire group,“ Dr Quade mentioned.
Forster admitted she was shocked by her Worlds success however has set the bar even greater.
“I believe I can carry out higher and I believe I’ve to carry out higher in Beijing as a result of there are extra rivals in my class and they’re actually robust,” she mentioned.
First appearances
Snowboarders Matthias Keller, Manuel Ness and Christian Schmiedt are making their Video games debuts as are Christoph Glötzner and Leander Kress in alpine snowboarding plus Nordic skiers Marco Maier, Johanna Recktenwald and Leonie Walter.
Linn Kazmaier, the imaginative and prescient impaired Nordic skier, is the youngest competitor within the German group at 15.
The oldest member of the group is 52-year-old Alexander Ehler, who has a bronze from the combined relay in PyeongChang and who solely began Para sport in 2017 after a motorcycle accident.
There is no such thing as a strain on the group and the main target could be very a lot on the 2026 Video games in Italy.
“I’m very glad to have 9 newcomers within the group. From my perspective it’s too early to characterise one in all these great athletes as a star for the longer term,” Dr Quade mentioned.
“The younger athletes shall carry out as finest they’ll and realise good outcomes. The Video games shall encourage them for his or her sporting profession and their life.
“If somebody wins a medal in China will probably be great however the principle purpose for the longer term would be the Video games in Milano and Cortina.“
Defending champion
There’s an iconic {photograph} of sitting biathlon gold medallist Martin Fleig, overcome with emotion after successful the 15km occasion at PyeongChang 2018.
Fleig, who was born with spina bifida, is again to defend his title.
Ⓒ Getty Photographs