Let's start with the Ski Jumping World Cup: 8 questions, 8 answers

1: Which “Azzurro” is number 1? Alex Insam. The man from Val Gardena is number 1 in the Italian team, even if the results so far don't necessarily support it. However, Italian ski jumpers are not among the best in the world. Insam has a lot of potential, but has never gotten higher than 25th place on the large hill. Nevertheless, the most consistent is “Azzurro”. 2: What about the rest of the Italians? In addition to Insam, there are two other “Azzurri” on the national ski jumping team. Sebastian Colloredo (31 years old) and Davide Bresadola. Colloredo has been in the World Cup circus for what feels like an eternity. In 2005 he jumped into the top 10 for the first time in Harrachov. He achieved his last top result two years ago at the Four Hills Tournament in Innsbruck (9th place). Bresadola has so far had one place in the top ten: 2014 in Lillehammer. 3: Will a German finally win the tour again? The euro had just replaced the German mark when Sven Hannawald became the last German to triumph on the tour in January 2002. Since then, ski jumping-crazy fans have been waiting in vain year after year. The current “problem” is Kamil Stoch, the Pole won all four competitions last year. If Stoch weakens, the DSV Adler Richard Freitag and Andreas Wellinger are ready. A year ago, Freitag was already in a hot duel until Stoch crashed in Innsbruck. Wellinger stepped in and came second overall. Kamil Stoch was recently the best ski jumper in the world. Will that be the case this year too? Wait. © APA/afp / GEIR OLSEN

4: Will Kamil Stoch be the dominator again? That is probably THE question par excellence. In the summer, Stoch weakened a little after a good start. Two strong years in a row are rare in ski jumping anyway: none of the last ten overall World Cup winners successfully defended their title. So Freitag and Wellinger can hope. Especially since Stoch is now 31... 5: Is Noriaki Kasai still there? Sure, of course! Even at 46 years old, the “pterosaur” from Japan still hasn’t had enough, even though he only finished 26th in the overall World Cup last winter. Kasai has been flying in the World Cup since 1988 and his long-term goal is the 2022 Olympics. And after that? We will see. Noriaki Kasai is not tired even at 46 years old. © APA/afp / ODD ANDERSEN

6: What about the Austrians? Everything should be better with the new head coach Andreas Felder, especially since the home World Cup is coming up in Seefeld (North Tyrol) at the end of February. This is also urgently needed: The former high-flyers didn't get a single victory last winter, only Stefan Kraft made it into the top 20 in the overall ranking in fourth place. The new hopes rest on Daniel Huber (25), but will it actually be enough to win again? Probably not. 7: What's new? Thanks to new sensors on the skis, TV viewers will be offered even more data in the future. In addition to the speed when taking off, the speed after 20 meters of flight and when landing are also measured, the same applies to the flight altitude. It is still unclear whether the TV stations will use the offer. The system should be visible on international television during the tour and the World Cup. Great talent: Lara Malsiner from Val Gardena. © APA/afp / JONATHAN NACKSTRAND

8: And the women? The women still have to wait for a Four Hills Tournament, but the women will take part in the Norwegian counterpart in the future. On the “Raw Air Tour” in Norway with stops in Oslo, Lillehammer and Trondheim, the female distance hunters will be competing together with the men for the first time in March 2019. Only the final ski flying in Vikersund is reserved for men. And: At the World Championships in Seefeld, a women's team competition is on the program for the first time. Whether the “Azzurre” will be at the start is still unclear.

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Let's start with the Ski Jumping World Cup: 8 questions, 8 answers

The new ski jumping season begins in Wisla at the weekend. We shed light on the most important questions about tours, the World Cup and long-distance hunting.

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