Olympic gold favorite Jarl Magnus Riiber has tested positive for the corona virus.
The Norwegian star in Nordic combined received a positive test shortly before the start of the Winter Games and now has to go into quarantine, the Norwegian Olympic organization Olympiatoppen said, as reported by the NTB news agency and other Norwegian media.
The 24-year-old Riiber has dominated the past few years and won the overall Nordic World Cup in 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21.
Riiber was initially indicated with several compatriots as the contact person for the Estonian combined athlete Kristjan Ilves, who was infected with Corona, and had to behave particularly carefully.
The first decision in the combination is scheduled for February 9th with a singles game for which Riiber was the clear favourite. The Nordic athlete is the first Norwegian athlete to test positive in China. His chances of participating in the start have now fallen: Riiber now has to submit two negative tests in order to be allowed to compete in the individual.
Apparently, Riiber has little hope of a start. “Gold is yours guys,” he wrote on Instagram.