Freund out of the Four Hills Tournament due to illness
January 4, 2017
Ski-jumping world champion Severin Freund of Germany is out of the tournament due to a flu. Freund will miss the final two competitions of the Four Hills tournament taking place in Innsbruck, Austria, the German Ski Federation (DSV) said on Wednesday.
The DSV also said Freund left the team late Tuesday and quoted him as saying: "I felt worse with each jump and underwent examinations. The doctor diagnosed me with a flu and told me to take a break and rest."
Freund also went on Twitter to share his discontent about leaving the tournament, once again citing his current health condition as the cause for dropping out early.
Freund's performance seemed to be off since the beginning of the tournament. The German placed 20th during the first competition in the southern German town of Oberstdorf. He then placed 21st in the following competition in the neighboring town Garmisch-Partenkirchen, leaving him at a modest 22nd spot overall in the tournament.
He also placed 47th during qualifying for Wednesday's event in Innsbruck. The tournament will conclude this Friday in Bischofshofen, Austria.
The 2015 World Cup champion had an accident a year ago during the previous edition of the Four Hills Tournament in Innsbruck and was forced to undergo hip surgery a few months later. Freund had been unable to return to his previous top form after surgery up until November at the season-opening events in Kuusamo, Finland where he placed second.
It still remains unclear when he will return to action in the Ski Jumping World Cup, but the team hopes he will be at his best again for next month's Nordic Ski World Championships in Lahti, Finland.