Ski jumper Wellinger talks about money before the Four Hills Tournament

With ski jumpers, a lot has to go together to fly far. Olympic gold medallist Andreas Wellinger is well aware of this and, after second place in 2017/18, will as always be one of the favourites for the Four Hills Tournament (29 December 2018 to 6 January 2019). He says: "A success at the Four Hills Tournament can come about if you are in good shape and then have the famous bit of luck at the opening jump in Oberstdorf. That gives you an aha-experience and the feeling that you don't have to think about your jumps at all anymore."

Wellinger also doesn't have to think much about his finances – the 23-year-old now has the drinks manufacturer Red Bull (instead of Milka) as a sponsor on his helmet and is one of the big earners in German winter sports. Within the framework of the „3 Questions to“-He talks about money, surfing and cooking in interviews with ISPO.com.

ISPO.com: You are studying business administration alongside sports and are currently at the chapter on tax theory. How important is money to you?
Andreas Wellinger: Rather incidental. It is a privilege for me to be able to finance my life through sport and – if I perform well – to be able to put something aside. Other competitive athletes in Germany have to work hard in addition to sport. I'm a good judge of how hard this is. I make the sport 100 percent because of the passion and not because of the money. The positive moments in sport, but also the negative experiences are simply priceless in life.

Do you ever indulge yourself?
I'm not the kind of guy who throws money out the window. But from time to time one should treat oneself to something, for example take a break at a beautiful holiday destination. After all, you only live once.

Surfing should be one of your leisure hobbies...
I actually learned that in Salzburg on a standing wave. I would also like to surf in the Eisbach in Munich. But because of the underwater concrete pillars, I'd rather not do that now. That's when reason as a competitive athlete strikes. I'm also very, very far from surfing huge monster waves in the ocean. Instead, I'd rather cook something at home. I really enjoy standing in the kitchen for an hour or two. But I'm a freestyler: I make something out of what's in the fridge right now. By the way, this is also what ski jumping is all about: getting the most out of the available possibilities (laughs).