German Olympic Team Target 30 Medals in Sochi

Posted: 11:16 pm, January 15, 2014 by MunichNOW News

The winning German team at the Biathlon World Cup in Sochi -- photo: dpa

Dusseldorf (dpa) - Germany has set a target of 30 medals in the forthcoming Olympic Games in Sochi.

“The preparation shows good and bad. But overall we are on the right path,” said Michael Vesper, general director of the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) on Tuesday.

“The target is to match or surpass the 30 medals collected in Vancouver. This is an ambitious goal.”

German athletes in the ladies’ team race at the World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships in Sochi. Grigoriy Sisoev/RIA Novosti

Vesper expanded his comments to say a range of 27 to 42 medals was believed to be a realistic expectation, if the athletes were fit and enjoyed a little luck.

Medal successes will be celebrated - and failures analysed - in the 650-square-metre German House in Krasnaya Polyana ski resort.

During the course of the Games, 350 athletes, coaches, administrators and sponsors will be hosted in the complex which boasts two log cabins, a lounge with a fireplace and the Chalet restaurant.

The facilities of German House will then be used by the paralympic team comprising 14 athletes who will compete in the Paralympics.

“It is a little piece of home in a foreign country,” explained Friedrich Julius Beucher, president of the German National Paralympic Committee (DBS).

Vesper was dismissive of security concerns following a terrorist attack in Volgograd and insists the German delegation will travel to Russia without fear.

“This question arises before every global event. We just have to trust that it works,” he said.

The total cost of the Olympics is in the region of 50 billion euro (68.4 billion dollars), which gave him reason to reflect on Munich’s failure to bid for the 2022 Games.

“Everything is brand new and exceptional. But it is the opposite model to what we had planned for Munich,” he said.

The German contingent of around 165 athletes will be confirmed on January 23. The Olympic Games will open in Sochi on February 7.