Carried by air and noise – sport

weak knees

Like their male colleagues, female ski jumpers are usually composed and concentrated. They’ve mastered the art of fading before launching themselves into the lane and then launching themselves headfirst into the air. After landing successfully, they box a little in the air or dance, and then quickly regain their trained balance, which carries them through the winter. It’s all the nicer when someone loses control.

Catherine Althaus mastered what is perhaps the most important cliff right at the start of this Nordic World Championships in Planica. Their success basically stretched from Thursday to Saturday and Sunday to Wednesday. She won gold three times and bronze once – and with her first win she showed what it’s like when balance gives way to being overwhelmed. Althaus fell to her knees and let her tears flow when she finally won the gold medal in the individual at a major event that she had been chasing for so many years.

Folded over and drove away

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Controlling your nerves is not only important in ski jumping, but also occasionally in cross-country skiing. When it comes to changing skis over long distances – for women after 15 out of 30 kilometers – nerves can block everything. Katharina Hennig, currently the best runner in the German Ski Association (DSV), put it just a little differently when she later admitted: “I pretty much screwed it up.” One ski fell over when she switched to freshly waxed slats, the other skied a bit away … and the clock ran … and ran …. and ran. When Hennig finally turned back onto the trail, the leading group was over the mountains. She didn’t make it back, but she still finished seventh in the end. And for her association she had long since played a decisive role in this World Cup. She had completed four races and, as the second runner in the relay, laid the foundation for the silver medal, which was followed the next day by bronze for the men’s team.

Uncertain future

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The World Championships debut of the women’s Nordic combined was a rather ordinary competition for the specialist audience. The favorites jumped, ran and sprinted. Nathalie Armbruster was second twice, without a chance against the long-term winner Gyda Westvold Hansen from Norway, but clearly in front of the rest of the field. This was still manageable, but it was also a premiere. The combination strategists of the world association had missed the point in time for the introduction of a women’s section, which means that there is still a risk that it will not be included in the Olympic program, and that the men’s version may also be discontinued at the Olympics.

However, this sport, steeped in tradition, is now looking for girls and women who love to train, have talent, physical condition and ski technique in the air and on the ground, and are reasonably young. Armbruster does all of this and more. The combined athlete from the Black Forest can work and remains confident – otherwise she wouldn’t be studying for the Abitur and at the same time would love to work in a sport that is in uncertain times.

Rhythmically twitching

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Anze Lanisek had a strong temper from an early age. He was allowed to get angry, but the coaches didn’t like to see his helmet thrown in the snow after a failed jump in the finish area. Now is Anze Lanisek World Champion – in front of their own audience. In the stadium, which was only sold out on the last weekend, everyone who wasn’t there when Lanisek was out in the youth team got an idea of ​​the energy that can break out in him. Only this time it was positive.

Lanisek, 26, has been in the top four in World Cup rankings all season. His calm flying style made the best distances possible that evening. Now he got through in the first round, tearing his skis off his feet and screaming like a heavy metal hero. After the victory, he filed past the spectators on slats, jerking his head rhythmically, waving his arms, kissing the camera lens, all with ski goggles.

So the Slovenes let themselves be carried by air and noise. And the Germans? fell back. The low point was in the second round, when national coach Stefan Horngacher tried to catch up with Markus Eisenbichler by shortening the inrun. If Eisenbichler had reached a minimum distance, that would have brought him ten additional points. But he missed the target by 50 centimeters, which annoyed him greatly because the measure had not been agreed with him. Eisenbichler also showed his temperament, certainly as loud as Lanisek.

Parasite-Besieger

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In the time leading up to the World Cup Earl Magnus Riiber Went through weeks with a nasty gastrointestinal parasite that had severely debilitated him. Then the combination specialist withdrew, defeated the parasite, defeated his poor form through training – and defeated everything that opposed him at the World Championships. Riiber won four out of four races, each with great jumps and serenity in the cross-country ski run. His opponents found Riiber’s early celebrations in the final race inappropriate – “I personally find that disrespectful,” said German Julian Schmid. He had already bounced off Riiber with an attempt to overtake in the team relay. However, the Norwegian received respect without exception for his sporting achievements: With a total of eight gold medals and various other medals, he has overtaken the German Eric Frenzel as the most successful combined athlete at the world championships.

Up and away

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That this Saturday would be her Saturday had that Ebba Andersson immediately felt. “I felt strong,” she said, “from the start.” This women’s cross-country marathon over 30 kilometers was basically not a race for records, after the cold days with hard slopes, the sun was now high in the firmament in the mild climate of Planica. The snow was warm and dull for the classic runners, the sun beat down on the runners’ field, which soon stretched out like melting ice cream. So what? By the time two laps out of four were completed, Andersson was finally certain that this was her day.

The 25-year-old got up and away. She had previously won a silver and a gold World Cup medal (2017 and 2019), as well as two bronze medals in individual races two years ago. So now was the time for her second of four golden plaques in Planica. Because the pursuers soon realized that they would only wear themselves out, they limited themselves to the fight for silver and bronze. Andersson’s plan was no longer in jeopardy, yet it looked as if driven by ambition, she continued to glide down the track, easily and rhythmically, on her day.