The 21-year-old Slovene has won the second Olympic medal in an individual ski jumping competition in Gorki, the Russian ski jumping centre. Although he has just started out on his career, his collection already includes four medals won in biggest competitions, and as many as three medals won in individual ski jumping competitions, which none of other Slovene eagles have managed so far.
He kept a level head already in Val di Fiemme
His climb to stardom started a year ago in Val di Fiemme, when he unexpectedly won a bronze medal. Although in the first round he was placed fifth, in the final he won third place. This time, history repeats itself: in the first half of the trials he took third place, but later finished in second place.
Seven medals in nine recent competitions
Unlike trials in Italy, this time the medal was no surprise. Last year in the Fiemme Valley, Peter Prevc did not win the stage; this year, only in the last nine individual trials he took the stage seven times. This was of course the reason why he emerged as one of the favourites. However, he resisted pressure.
He slipped past journalists
The atmosphere before the competition was electrifying. One had a feeling that the competition was held in Slovenia. The ski jumping hill was prepared by the workers of Planica, the competition broadcasted by the TV Slovenia team; the spectators in stands were as loud as lynxes. When the moment of truth came, Peter did not fail. In the first round, he won third place. After the competition, he quickly slipped past journalists. As if to say: “I’ve already said everything with this jump.” Indeed he has. He has confirmed that training is not the same as competitions.
Prevc’s elegant telemark
In the final, history repeated itself. Again, he performed flawlessly, and in harsh conditions he jumped about 100 metres and elegantly touched the ground in the telemark landing style, which is even more important when performing on a smaller ski jumping hill, trying to achieve spectacular results.
When number one appeared on a scoreboard, when Slovenia jumped into the air, and when his fellows Jernej Damjan and Jurij Tepeš enthusiastically jumped into the air, he himself remained calm. As if to say: “I came after this, right?” It all seemed so easy and prepared. Psychologically, he was so perfectly prepared for this moment that an observer could get a feeling that for him the hardest part of the Olympic performance was communication with the media, which, as he told before leaving for Sapporo, was due to journalists’ repetition of the same questions.
Relief for the Slovenian team
The first Slovenian medal in Sochi also means relief before next competitions. Slovenian eagles were undoubtedly favourites to win at least one medal in the Olympics. Since they have succeeded already in the first competition, they have relieved psychological stress. The same conclusion applies to the whole Olympic expedition.