Aleksander Zniszczoł is the new leader of the Polish national team. What is his secret?

Aleksander Zniszczoł took a long time to reach the halfway point of the 2023/24 season. The Polish ski jumper most often belonged to the back-up of the A team, but as it turned out, in the face of a deep financial crisis, it was the player from Cieszyn who took over the leadership role in the White and Red team.

Aleksander Zniszczoł has a chance of reaching the top of the World Cup?

This can be seen, for example, in the World Cup classification. Zniszczoł is in 23rd place after the weekend in Willingen. At the halfway point of the competition on the German hill, the Pole was first third, and then took the position of leader of the competition. Ultimately, he finished the competition in eighth place.

However, the remaining teammates from the A team did not come close to Zniszczoł’s achievements. Will this be his time? Jan Szturc, one of the ski jumping coaching legends in Poland, spoke on this matter. The trainer who discovered the talents of Adam Małysz, Piotr Żyła and… Zniszczoł.

– Half of this season’s competitions are behind us and it’s already going well, but it’s clear that Olek is just getting started. I see a very good approach position in him, an active one, he has the base that our other jumpers currently lack. Olek is also very well organized on the threshold, he does everything technically very well. His work over a dozen years has borne fruit. He will turn 30 on March 8, he is already a very experienced, strong jumper and he already knows that he is very valuable. I think he will still be in the top six and on the podium this winter, admitted Szturc in an interview with Łukasz Jachimiak for Sport.pl.

Additionally, the experienced coach emphasizes the great mental strength of the Polish jumper. Destroyer did not give up, waiting for his big chance.

– Olek is extremely mentally strong. He never gave up, he worked no matter what. He had good years in the Continental Cup, he didn’t get many chances in the main series, he survived it, matured, and now he is reaping the rewards – adds Szturc.

World Cup in Lake Placid, where and what time to watch?

The competition in the United States for the best jumpers in the world will start on Friday, February 9. The time of training and qualifying will be unusual, considering Polish time. Official training is scheduled for 8:30 p.m., while qualifying will start at 11:00 p.m.

As for competitions, three are scheduled in Lake Placid. On Saturday (February 10), a trial series will start at 2:15 p.m., followed by an individual competition at 3:15 p.m. There will be a duet competition at 11 p.m. On Sunday (February 11) at 2:00 p.m. qualifications, and from 3:15 p.m. the individual competition. Then, the jumpers in the same squads will move to Sapporo, Japan.

The broadcasts will be available on Eurosport and TVN. In the case of online broadcast, the following will be available, among others: on Player.pl or platforms where the above-mentioned channels are available. For example, we are talking about Polsat Box Go.