Willi Denifl proudly presents his current company car, which also presents all his sporty supporters. Since this summer, the logo of Peter Riedel GmbH has been part of it, because the Saxonian in-run track manufacturer now supports the Austrian Nordic Combined. 

“It is the first time for us to sponsor Willi Denifl, an athlete from competitive sport. I have known him for a long time and I am delighted that we can support him on his way to the Olympic Games”, says General Manager Peter Riedel. 

Willi Denifl did not compete in the Summer Grand Prix in order to prepare optimally for the Olympic winter. “I'm absolutely fine; everything is going according to plan. I have trained a lot and further developed my cross-country skiing skills”, explains the 2003 world champion. ”I have not started at the Summer Grand Prix for years because I realized that it is no use to me. Instead, I have invested a lot of training in ski jumping this summer because I believe that the Nordic combination can only be won by good ski jumping.”

At the age of 36, he is one of the “old hands” and knows exactly what he needs. “I don't really work out any differently than before. I need to listen more to my body, but I've come to know myself relatively well and know what's good for me."

The October will be quite stressful for him, as there are many appointments shortly before winter. Besides getting the new outfits, there are two training camps on the agenda, and then the great wait for the first snow begins, being able to start with the cross-country skiing training. They will then go to Finland or Norway at the beginning of November, to get the finishing touches before the start of the World Cup season. He and his teammates will start into the new season on November 24th in Ruka, Finland.

The goals are clear: “I just want to start the season with a good result in order to qualify for the Olympics. The Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang are the highlight, of course, which is why I had continued in the first place.“ The culmination of his long career will be at the domestic World Championships in Seefeld in 2019, unless “I get such an immoral offer that I can't refuse and have to continue”, Denifl explains with a laugh.