Eric Betzold (KEC “Die Haie”) won the bronze medal in the Ice Hockey Skills Competition at the 2016 Youth Olympic Winter Games in Lillehammer (Norway).
The Cologne native came second in the final (February 18) in the category “Skating Agility” and even first in “Passing Precision”. In the end, he was only beaten by the Slovakian Sebastian Cederle (silver) and the Romanian Eduard Casaneanu (gold). “It is an overwhelming feeling to win a medal, especially after such a thriller. To win the bronze medal is crazy,” said Betzold after the award ceremony. The competition had started anything but happily for the young German, when he stumbled in the first discipline, the lap running, and lost to the Hungarian Natan Vertes despite a dive to the finish. “That was of course a big setback, especially as that was one of my Parais dediscipline. But it’s also about recovering from something like that and continuing to fight,” he reported. Cheered on by numerous members of the German youth Olympic team, Betzold worked his way up from eighth to third place in Kristins Hall. After the last discipline, Betzold wasn't sure where he was at first. “It was all so close, I actually thought I would be fourth. When my name was called third, I was amazed,” he said, visibly happy. Betzold sees the competition as such as positive. “It requires basic techniques that you need in every game. Of course it's different than a game, but here too you have to stay focused above all," he said.
Tabea Botthof (TSV Erding) took eighth place in the women's skills competition two days earlier (February 16.02.2016, XNUMX).
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