Problem children, talents & Co: That's what the new biathlon boss says

Mr. Höllrigl, how did you get this job?

Klaus Höllrigl: “My predecessor Fabrizio Curtaz said before last season that he would quit. Of course, we thought about who the successor could be, but we didn't come up with a real ideal candidate. At the Olympics, Curtaz asked me if I wanted to do it. He said I was the right man for the job. At first I refused. But he didn't let up and piqued my interest. At some point I said I could imagine it if I could make the decisions and not have others telling me what to do. The president assured me that, so I agreed.”

Now, as head of biathlon, you no longer do the training work. What exactly are your tasks?

“Of course I’ll go to the training ground. But I don't interfere in the work of the trainers. My job now is to take care of the entire biathlon sport in Italy, starting from the air pressure area up to the World Cup. All strategic decisions go through my desk. I put the teams together, I put the coaching team together, I take care of the relations with the International Federation, just everything that has to do with biathlon in Italy.”

“The focus is clearly on 2026.” Klaus Höllrigl

There are four special years ahead, because in 4 there will be the Winter Games in Antholz. Are we already working towards this or is it still too far away?

“These games in our own country have the positive effect that we have more financial resources than before. And we have started a project with a young team that will be in their prime biathlon age in 2026. The focus is clearly on 2026.”

Linda Zingerle is one of the great talents. © IBU / Evgeny Tumashov

And will this young team now be given the time to slowly grow?

“The internal competition is already there because we have many young athletes with potential. We now have a relatively large team of women and men. The plan is to prepare the best in a smaller squad for the Olympics two years before the Olympics. Of course, that doesn't mean that others can't also qualify for the Olympics. But of course we’re giving the boys time now and don’t expect top performances in the World Cup straight away.”

“We have probably never had so much talent.” Klaus Höllrigl

Do the successes in the youth sector give hope for a glorious future?

“Many nations, including the top nations, would be happy if they were so well positioned with young talent. We have probably never had so much talent. It's now up to us to make sure they take the final steps. I hope that the internal competition also creates an additional attraction.”

What do you think of Lukas Hofer's decision to do a large part of the training with the Swedish team?

“Luki came to me and shared this idea with me. We had a few conversations and I quickly understood that there were only winners. Luki has been in our system for a long time now and needs new stimuli. At the same time, he is a huge role model for our young athletes and they have learned a lot from him. But there comes a time when they have to start stepping out of this shadow and developing their own biathlon. But he does some training with us, and he remains an important point of reference.”

“Lisa Vittozzi has the potential to win World Cup races.” Klaus Höllrigl

Now they also have a problem child in the team. This is Lisa Vittozzi.

“We know she can and we have to get her back there. Our new shooting coach Jonne Kähkönen is working on it and we hope that she can get the problem she has in the prone position under control. She is important to us, because in terms of her age she is the bridge between Luki and Doro and the boys. She has the potential to win World Cup races.”

Were you surprised by Dominik Windisch's resignation?

“I have to say that I was very surprised when he told me that. I didn't expect that. But I’m very happy that he’s staying with our sport as a coach.”

What do you expect from next season?

“We have Luki Hofer and Doro Wierer, who are at the highest level, we have Lisa Vittozzi, who also has this potential, then Didier Bionaz and Tommaso Giacomel, who were already in the top 15 in the World Cup, and they are both still very young. For the others it is important to move towards World Cup points or to be at the top of the IBU Cup.”

Why is it that Italy, which does not have a large base, is always so successful in biathlon?

“Biathlon has grown a lot in Italy in recent years. We now have a lot of girls doing biathlon. On the other hand, people like Fabrizio Curtaz, Andreas Zingerle, Patrick Oberegger and Alexander Inderst have set the right course. The secret of success was continuity. There were always the same people at work who had clear ideas and went their own way. I'm trying to continue that. Of course you also have to develop further. We brought in a foreign coach, but he integrated himself very well into our system.”

Football

Italy

International leagues

International

Winter sports

Tennis

Other sports

Motorsport

Cycling

Watersports

Events

Favorites

Problem children, talents & Co: That's what the new biathlon boss says

He should lead Italy's biathlon into the future. Klaus Höllrigl is the new biathlon director at the “Azzurri”. In the following interview, Latscher explains why he accepted the job after initial hesitation and what his plans are.

Suggestions

Comments (0)