Once upon a time: Amman won the 2010 Olympics on the big hills of Whistler.Image: imago-images.de
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He danced and danced and danced. Simon Ammann is now 43 years old, with a family, studies, many projects and an unwavering love for ski jumping. He begins his 28th World Cup season this weekend.
It must be very beautiful to be a ski jumper. Start, take off, fly. Mankind's age-old dream comes true in seconds.
On a ski fly, athletes slide into the depths for seven or eight seconds. As Simon Ammann once told me, the final pulse was over 200 beats per minute.
Amman competed in the Four Mountains Championships last winter.Picture: www.imago-images.de
It’s easy to understand how addictive this adrenaline rush can be. You want to experience the feeling of falling like an eagle into the abyss again and again.
like in european park
I once asked Amman to make a comparison for us laymen so that we could better understand his movement. “I was in the Europa Park in the summer,” he said. “Ski jumping is like jumping out of a car on the fastest track and landing on two skis at 100 km/h.”
An impressive comparison has stuck with me. What he left behind was admiration for everyone who ventured out into this world.
1993, 12-year-old Amman.Image: KEYSTONE/private
Double double Olympic champion!
We are both from Obertorgenberg and are almost the same age. As a child I used to ski jump at the Wildhaus, where Ammann learned to ski jump. It felt great, I was told it was twenty meters. There were probably ten or so, but it felt like fifty. Since I was physically closer to the wrestlers, ski jumping was never an option.
While my flying career ended with an afternoon of alpine skiing experience, Simone Ammann was preparing to become the most successful winter athlete in Swiss Olympic history. Won two gold medals in Salt Lake City in 2002 and two gold medals in Vancouver in 2010. Two pairs of Olympic champions – one of a kind!
The last time I was on the podium was seven years ago.
The first victory was over twenty years ago. It’s always amazing how time flies. I can still clearly see Jörg Abderhaden and Nordi Forel, two strong men from Togenburg, carrying Kinsimi into Antwasser’s crowded tennis court after returning from the United States. pavilion. Two kings of wrestling and kings of the air.
The gold medal hid Nöldi Forrer's face and Jörg Abderhalden walked behind him.Image: KEYSTONE
Long gone are the golden days when Amman also became world champions and won the World Cup. It’s been seven years since Amman last topped the World Cup podium. The last victory was exactly ten years ago next week: in November 2014, Amman won two World Cups in Kuusamo, Finland. He celebrated a victory with another older pterosaur, Noriaki Kasai, with the same score. The Japanese will compete in the second-tier Intercontinental Cup this winter at the age of 52.
Remember to brake when flying
Nothing is impossible in ski jumping. But it would be a sporting miracle if Simon Ammann gets on the podium again. He dances because he can dance and because he likes to dance. And as long as he performs well enough in national competitions, no one can accuse him of holding back the development of young athletes. It's quite the opposite: If you can look up to a ski jumper at the top and bottom of his career, that's incredibly valuable.
Three children, a demanding HSG course, numerous personal projects – for other 43-year-old fathers, this alone is almost too much. Simone Ammann also manages to live and train like a professional athlete. His discipline and perseverance over the decades is at least as admirable as someone who even had the courage to abandon the solid ground beneath his feet on a takeoff pad.
In 2015, Ammann, who works on the Toggenburg Mountain Railway, takes a photo on the Chäserrugg in front of the new summit building.Image: KEYSTONE
Amman said he now flies with reserves, no longer pushes for absolute limits and is aware of his responsibilities as a family man. He could have stopped a long time ago, he didn't have to prove anything to anyone. But he doesn't want to stop. He tried new things but had yet to find a new passion.
Machine lights green
In February, Oman said it was “unrealistic” to participate in the 2026 Cortina Olympics. However, he also said: “I won't make any more plans, but it would be a dream to experience the Olympics again in Europe.”
Beneath the Five Rings: Amman has participated in seven Winter Olympics so far.Image: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Amman knew and felt that she was no longer young either. At some point, his body will tell him enough is enough. But the machine, which is 173 centimeters tall and weighs 60 kilograms, still gave the mental green light. So Simon Ammann continues to do what he probably enjoys most.
Over the weekend, he will compete in the first World Cup of winter in Lillehammer, Norway. No longer for fame and fortune. Rather, it takes a lot of hard work, dedication and passion to achieve your everlasting dream of flying.
Simon Oman's career
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Simon Oman's career
At the age of 16, Simon Amann made his ski jumping debut at the 1997/98 Four Mountains Championships. Over the course of his long career, the native of Toggenberg from Untwasser became the most successful Swiss ski jumper of all time.
Those: Keystone/Arno Barzarini
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