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Interview by: Katarzyna Clio Gucewicz, Aneta Stryczek, photos by Martyna Szydlowska
The second person we talked to during the Finnish competitions of the Scandinavian Tournament was the Norwegian representative Tom Hilde. At just 20 years old, he made his way into the world elite of ski jumping this season, even though this is only his second year competing in the World Cup. Have an enjoyable read!
Skokinarciarskie.pl: You're the best Norwegian jumper this year, being also the youngest one at that. How would you comment on your season?
Tom Hilde: I don't consider myself the best right now, even though I have the highest rank in the standings. In general, I've had a good season, but the others have caught up with me, and that's very cool, because even when I'm not jumping great, then other guys on the team are getting good results. However, age isn't much of a factor for our squad - we're a team, whether you're 31 like Roar, or 20 like me. We still do the same things, work towards the same goals. Though of course, it's very pleasant to be successful at this age already.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: You said that you're not the strongest athlete on the team right now. Still, you've without a doubt had a great start to the season. What's the problem now?
T.H.: The season is long, and you always have better and worse moments. Personally, I don't feel like my jumping is much worse than it was in the beginning, but the competition level has risen in the course of the season and more of the competitors have improved on their jumps. If you don't show really good jumps, then your results deteriorate considerably. Maybe I'm a bit tired, but my best jumps still reflect the level I want to achieve.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: You've got the fourth tank in the overall standings, still within reach of a podium placement. Do you believe that you can catch up with Janne Ahonen and Gregor Schlierenzauer?
T.H.: Of course, it's possible, but I'm not thinking about that. I'm trying to concentrate on my own jumps. If I manage to do that, I know that I can beat them both. Actually, it's not my goal to be third or second in the World Cup, because before the season, I wanted to be among the best 15 jumpers, and I've already achieved that. (laughs) Now I'm trying to enjoy jumping as much as I can, and above all, to have fun while jumping as best I can and maintaining a place in the lead.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: What's the reason behind your outstanding results? Could it be changes in training, in the preparations? Or experience gained last winter, when you regularly started jumping for the representation?
T.H.: I think the reason is that this year, I knew exactly what I want and what I plan to do about it. I knew that I wanted to be in the game all season. Other than that, I moved to Lillehammer, where my coach Jermund Lunder lives. That was a serious decision and a big change, but it brought excellent results. Now I'm two minutes away from the hill and two minutes away from the training center, I don't have to waste time on getting there like I did when I lived in Asker. Besides that, I've been working on my form for about five years and I'm finally seeing effects.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: You're a very popular person, which has its positive as well as its negative sides. How does it feel to be a star, do you feel like one at all?
T.H.: No, actually, I don't. You can feel like that sometimes - like when we came down to the stadium in Lahti and people were cheering and applauding - but in Norway, I don't feel like a star. Maybe it's because we haven't had the time to enjoy our fame yet. Maybe when the season is over, I'll have the possibility to meet people and get that feeling.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: Do you plan on using your popularity to pick up girls, for example?
T.H.: No! Of course not!
Skokinarciarskie.pl: But as a team, you're very popular, you have a blog with a lot of pictures. There are many films on YouTube with you as Tom-Asbjoern. Tell us something about that.
T.H.: There was a comedy series called "The Christmas Calendar" on Norwegian television a few years ago. One of the acotrs is a really funny guy and plays about six characters in different episodes. One of them is called Asbjoern and is a mentally retarded person. I imitate him in our videos.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: You're always smiling - on TV, in pictures. Regardless of how you're jumping - you're always a positive and polite person. Are you like that in real life too?
T.H.: Not always, but I try to see as many positive things as possible, because I'm aware of the fact that things go better when you do. If you're angry, upset, negative, nothing good can come of that. Besides, it's kind of natural for me, because I know that it's the best option. I don't have to try too hard.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: What's the best thing about being a ski jumper?
T.H.: The best thing is... (thinks) Jumping? (laughs) It's great to be doing the thing you love, and I love jumping. I can also make a living out of it and that's splendid.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: So let's get back to jumping. What do you think of the Ski Flying World Championships in Oberstdorf? Are you satisfied with your performance?
T.H.: We're not satisfied, but we tried, and we couldn't do anything else but try. We don't really know why we didn't do better. That's Mika's job: to explain what went wrong, because both myself and the team gave it our all, but it wasn't enough.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: You were 11th in the individual event...
T.H.: 11th place isn't satisfactory for anyone who can afford to do a lot better. Naturally, the result in itself is not that bad, but I know that I can jump much better. That worries me a bit, because I don't know why my jumps in Oberstdorf weren't as good as they should be. I'm not very satisfied with my performance there in general.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: Were the weather conditions an influence?
T.H.: No. Everybody jumped under the same conditions. Besides, I do fine on wet inrun tracks. I won twice and came in second once in those conditions. So that couldn't be it.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: Which ski jumping hills do you jump better on: regular or ski flying?
T.H.: That's a hard question. Before I used to do best on normal hills, K90s. Then something changed, I started jumping better and better on larger ones. Last year, though, I had the best results in Planica. Personally, I hope I'm the best on flying hills.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: Clas Brede Braathen said, that for many years there was more flying going on in Norway than jumping. It's only in the past few years that efforts have been made to change this, ski jumping is indeed jumping, after all. Can you say how much has really changed in your team in that respect?
T.H.: I've only been in the representation for two years, so I don't know. However, I do know that in the past, when Norwegian ski jumpers would come to a ski flying hill, they knew that they were capable of doing well on it. They had a lot of self-confidence, and that's extremely important. Maybe that's why they had such excellent results.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: This season is different from the last: you don't have a leader who would keep winning like Anders Jacobsen did last year, but you have many athletes high up in the rankings - right now, there are 4 Norwegians in the top 10. Does that influence the atmosphere in the team in any way?
T.H.: No. Anders is jumping well now, too, and we were just not as good last season. Bardal is also doing better now than in his debut season, it's easier for him to jump now. I have the impression that we've learned to use our potential in the competitions, to do well not only at trainings.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: How's your brother Terje? He must be sick of you, now that you've gotten all successful...
T.H.: No, it's not like that at all. I think that he's really happy about it. For many years, he was better than me, and now that's changed. On the other hand, I think that this is sort of a proof for him, that he can jump even better himself. Terje has taken part in Continental Cup competitions already, and more often than last year. I hope that he will manage to achieve the level I'm at right now. I think that he's capable of doing that, if he really wants it.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: How many siblings do you actually have?
T.H.: I have two brothers: one younger, one older. But the younger one isn't a ski jumper, but a golf player.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: Golf is also a hobby of yours, as is music. Did anything change there?
T.H.: No. But ski jumping takes up so much time, that I don't really have the opportunity to do anything else. It's hard to find something new. I do have a motorcycle though, which I'll be tending to in the summer.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: The season is slowly coming to an end. Do you have any plans for the free time you will soon have? Do you just want to cut yourself off from everything, or are you planning upcoming training sessions and preparations for next winter?
T.H.: For the past four years I've usually had a week of vacation, and later I would start light training, so I think that this year will be similar. This system has been effective until now, and besides, I like to train, so there's no need to lay around on the couch. A week off is enough for me, although I don't know yet what I'm going to do in that time.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: Aren't you worried that next season might not be as great for you as this one?
T.H.: You can't have that kind of worries, because if you're afraid of something like that, then it will surely happen. I think I'll just keep doing what I do well, and I'll try to get better and better. A defensive attitude doesn't bring results, you have to be in the offense at all times. You have to work hard to improve on your results. I hope that I'll also be in the lead next year, and I think that it's possible. On the other hand, you never know, but I wouldn't view it as the biggest catastrophe, if I didn't manage to repeat this year's achievements next year. I have many years ahead of me to come back to the top.
Skokinarciarskie.pl: Thank you for the interview.
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