"I proved I can do it."

Thomas Morgenstern won the overall World Cup at the Ski Jumping event in Willingen. In interview, the 21 year-old Austrian talks about records, the Ski Flying World Championships and about lost bets.

Congratulations on winning the overall World Cup so early. How big a load off your mind was your success in Willingen?

Massive. It was important for me to win the overall World Cup before the Ski Flying World Championships in order to put an end to all the speculation. It was getting pretty tiresome towards the end, because all the media was concerned about was when I was going to seal the victory.

You heralded your World Cup victory right after your triumph at the Summer GP. What made you so sure that this was going to be your year?

Preparations went well from the very beginning this year. I wasn't ill, suffered no injuries and I no longer have to worry about school. I used to have to study for school after training. This year I was able to use the time I would have spent on training and competition to relax, spend time with my family and my girlfriend.

Where does the victory rank alongside Olympic medals and World Championships?

Winning at the Olympics was like a snapshot in time where everything had to come together on one day: form, the jump and luck. Winning the overall World Cup is more difficult. You have to deliver over a long period of time and score points consistently - this year I proved I can do it.

At what point did you realise that the overall World Cup was in the bag?

After Sapporo. I had a 610 point lead with nine events to go and I knew I'd somehow be able to score the remaining points I needed.

You have a chance to break another two records in the remaining competitions: Janne Ahonen's record for the most number of World Cup wins in a season and Martin Schmitt's record for the most podium finishes. How does that grab you?

I'd love to break one or two more records - it would be testimony to the great work we've done over the past season. But I'm still aiming to win the Nordic Tournament in Finland and Norway, where I already won in 2006.

Many athletes have been known to shave their locks or change their hair colour after a big achievement. What can we expect from you?