“It’s so unbelievable” – 17-year-old student wins silver for Germany
A 17-year-old girl wins World Cup silver for Germany
Combined Nathalie Armbruster won the individual silver medal at the Nordic World Ski Championships. The 17-year-old student was only beaten by the Norwegian title holder Gyda Westvold Hansen on Friday.
The German team celebrates its second medal in less than 24 hours at the Nordic World Ski Championships: Thursday evening, ski jumper Katharina Althaus won her first individual World Championship title, now Nathalie Armbruster is crowned Vice World Champion. At just 17 years old.
EFirst she carried the German flag at the opening ceremony of the Nordic World Ski Championships in Planica, now Nathalie Armbruster won silver there with a strong performance in the Nordic combined. The 17-year-old, who had made it onto the podium in seven of nine World Cup races this winter, fought for second place in the final cross-country race.
Her starting position was promising: On Friday morning, the student jumped 98 meters on the normal hill and finished second. Only the Norwegian long-term winner Gyda Westvold Hansen was stronger, who convinced with 91 meters with a significantly shorter run-up and thus started 20 seconds before the young German in the five-kilometer run in the afternoon. Another medal candidate was the Italian Annika Sieff, who went onto the track 30 seconds after the leader.
Three athletes fighting for silver and bronze: Ida Marie Hagen, Nathalie Armbruster and Haruka Kasai
Source: AP/Matthias Schrader
In the end, despite a fall, the Norwegian won in front of the young German, who prevailed behind her in the fight for silver, although she had to fight hard in between. Third was the Japanese Haruka Kasai. Armbruster could hardly believe it: “I have no words, it’s so unbelievable, I’ll start crying again,” she said euphorically. “A huge thank you to my family, to my best friends, to my coaches. And to the technicians – we had awesome skis.”
Two years ago, when the combined women made their debut at the Nordic World Ski Championships in Oberstdorf, the Norwegians celebrated a triple success with world champion Westvold Hansen. The German team went away empty-handed.
The second medal on the second day
With her success, Armbruster ensured the second medal for the German team on the second day of the title fights in Slovenia. On Thursday evening, ski jumper Katharina Althaus, two-time Olympic silver medalist from Oberstdorf, triumphed on the normal hill. It was her first World Championship title in an individual competition, before that she had already won four World Championship titles with the mixed and women’s teams.
“Every medal has something of its own. Winning as a team is super cool. But alone is just something different, because no one can tear it out anymore,” says Althaus. “If the jump isn’t right, then you’re not up there. Sometimes it evens out a bit with the team.”
