The German combined men have their eyes on the next World Cup medal. After jumping off the large hill, the relay is in third place. In the afternoon there could be a historic medal.
The German Nordic Combined can hope for the next medal. In the men’s relay, the Germans are third after jumping. The quartet with Johannes Rydzek, Eric Frenzel, Vinzenz Geiger and Julian Schmid has 23 seconds on Norway after jumping off the large hill on Wednesday afternoon (March 1st, 2023) and only three seconds on the second-placed Austrians.
Riiber flies at 139 meters
Leader Norway with Joergen Graabak (120.0 meters), high-flyer Jarl Magnus Riiber (139.0 meters), Espen Andersen (126.0 meters) and Jens Luraas Oftebro (127.5 meters) are the first team to rise from 3.10 p.m the 4×5 kilometer cross-country trail. Behind the Germans in fourth and fifth place, the strong French (+ 40 seconds) and Japan (+ 1:15 minutes) are also within striking distance of the medals.
Schmid with the second best distance
Johannes Rydzek flew 115.5 meters at his first World Championships in Planica with a tailwind, Eric Frenzel landed 123.5 meters in good conditions, Vinzenz Geiger as the second best jumper in his group at 125.5 meters and Julian Schmid with a strong updraft 137 meters.
Geiger: “Want to attack gold”
“These are good prospects”Geiger said after the competition in the sports show. “The Riiber has made an extraordinary jump. But maybe we can work together with Austria. We want to attack for gold if it’s possible.” Austria with Martin Fritz (120.0 meters), Stefan Rettenegger 121.0 meters), Lukas Greiderer (130.0 meters) and Johannes Lamparter (130.0 meters) can be assessed as having a similar running strength as the Germans.
Cross-country skiing: Frenzel, Geiger, Rydzek, Schmid
For the cross-country competition, national coach Herrmann Weinbuch has set up Eric Frenzel as the starting runner. The Oberwiesenthaler starts shortly after Austria’s weakest runner Martin Fritz. The Norwegians start with Espen Andersen. The powerful Vinzenz Geiger is number two. With Joergen Graabak and Lukas Greiderer he has strong competition in the cross-country ski run. Johannes Rydzek as the third runner has to deal with the best cross-country skier in the World Cup, Jens Luraas Oftebro from Norway, and Stefan Rettenegger. Germany’s final runner Julian Schmid has to deal with Jarl Magnus Riiber and Johannes Lamparter, who is strong in the sprint.
Frenzel on the way to a historic medal
Frenzel can break a historic mark in the 4×5 kilometer cross-country race in the afternoon. If the Saxon, who lives in Franconia, wins a medal, he could become the sole world record holder at the Ski World Championships. Frenzel would win his 18th medal, overtaking the previous men’s record holder, Norway’s Björn Dählie. The overall record of Norwegian Marit Björgen, who won 18 World Championship titles and a total of 26 World Championship medals, remains unmatched for Frenzel.
Already three combined medals in Planica
With two silver medals for Nathalie Armbruster and Julian Schmid in the normal hill competitions and silver in the mixed relay, the German combined team has already won three medals in Planica.