Dear employees, athletes, partners and friends,

A moving, emotional and somehow crazy year is ending for me these days. I spent 273 days in the air, in hotels or in the car, dedicating myself to what I do best: equipping the ski jumps of this world with the most modern run-up tracks. This week we officially handed over the famous Holmenkolbakken. It is the 55th hill in ten years on which Peter Riedel GmbH leaves its traces. And that, in the truest sense of the word.

I can hardly put into words how proud I am of what my team and I have achieved in the last ten years! Without my employees, who support me with their professional work in wind and weather, and my reliable supplier partners, we would never have come this far.

This year especially emotional for us was ski jumping in Vikersund. We had hoped that our new track would set new standards, but we did not expect to go through a rollercoaster of emotions during team jumping. Two world record jumps within ten minutes—that was simply incredible, and the whole team was hugely proud. I am very curious whether Stefan Kraft's 253.5 meters will withstand the new year.

With the Bergisel Hill in Innsbruck and the Holmenkollen, we realized two projects this year that are especially close to my heart. After Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Bergisel is the second hill of the Four Hills Tournament equipped with our track system. The ÖSV has thus set the course for a fair and safe competition for all athletes, regardless of weather conditions. The jumps at the beginning of the new year are also an important test for the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2019 in Seefeld. There are also new perspectives at the Holmenkollen, because there we mounted for the first time a combined run-up track, the Master Track Double, which makes ski jumping possible in winter and summer. Who knows, maybe we will experience a Summer Grand Prix in Oslo in the near future.

Whether Innsbruck, Oslo, Trondheim, Hinzenbach, Auerbach, Scheibenberg, Tschagguns, Berchtesgaden, Garmisch-Partenkirchen or Chaux-Neuve – I would like to take this opportunity to thank all partners most sincerely. For the trust you place in me and my employees. But primarily for your interest and the courage to try something new and innovative. Each hill has its own peculiarities, and for us it is always a great honor to work with you. I am especially pleased that in recent years many personal friendships have formed.

My special thanks this year go to Selina Freitag. As a image bearer she has provided us with her athletic likeness for our new advertising campaign. We have changed over the last ten years and, with our new, innovative run-up systems, conquered the hills of this world. To carry this new, dynamic look to the outside, we worked in spring with a forward-looking advertising agency to develop a uniform corporate identity. Our modern re-branding is reflected not only in company cars, brochures and posters, but now also on all hills that are equipped with run-up traces from Peter Riedel GmbH.

If I could wish for something for the new year, it would be time. Time for new, exciting projects. Time for conversations from which new ideas arise. Above all, time for family and friends who had to do without me a lot this year. I will use the Christmas holidays to relax and recharge for the tasks waiting for us in the coming year.

I wish my employees, suppliers, our partners and friends and of course you, dear readers, a peaceful Christmas and a good start into the new year!

Yours Peter Riedel