Conditions at the hill very changeable
The women had to struggle with the conditions at the facility, especially in the first round. The cold and the wind bothered them. Again and again there were breaks, many jumpers had to come off the beam again.
“You have to stay with yourself and not think about why you’re waiting. It’s best to have warm thoughts, it’s pretty cold after all.”, Pauline Hessler said after her first jump. The thermometer on the hill showed double-digit minus degrees.
Althaus in the lead at half-time
Althaus withstood the pressure in the first round and, as the last starter, showed the second longest jump of 105.5 meters. Only Bogataj jumped further with 108 meters. Although this meant a new hill record, the Slovenian suffered deductions when she landed and was 3.1 points behind the German at half-time.
The other German athletes had nothing to do with the medal award after just one jump.