Oslo (AP) – Markus Eisenbichler sent a kiss to the TV camera, then shouted “Yes!” loudly. The German ski jumper happily and emotionally celebrated his second place at the famous Holmenkollen in Oslo.
The fact that it wasn’t enough for victory in the direct duel with Olympic champion Marius Lindvik from Norway was also due to Eisenbichler’s landing. “He could have won if he did telemark. He still has to work on that, then he can win,” said national coach Stefan Horngacher on ZDF. The podium was completed by Robert Johansson from Norway.
Eisenbichler’s buddy Karl Geiger, who finished seventh, was happy with the best German. “He made two really good jumps. He was really good yesterday. I’m really happy for him. The 1.6 points – I hope he still gets them tomorrow,” said Geiger. The 30-year-old Bavarian, nicknamed “Eisei”, was still in the lead after the first round – but after a shaky landing, the two 130-meter jumps were not enough for his fourth World Cup victory, but for second place.
Kobayashi defends yellow jersey
Geiger again finished just behind his longtime rival Ryoyu Kobayashi of Japan, who defended his yellow jersey in sixth place. For the 29-year-old from the Allgäu it was still a good jump after a mixed mixed on Friday. “I’m very happy with the competition. Those were the two best jumps I showed here,” said Geiger. Geiger and Eisenbichler are in third and fourth place ahead of the end of Sunday’s Raw Air Tour. The Austrian Stefan Kraft is in the lead ahead of Kobayashi.
Behind the top German duo, Severin Freund (19th), Andreas Wellinger (25th) and Constantin Schmid (26th) also scored points in the World Cup. For Wellinger it was the first points since he missed the Winter Olympics after a positive corona test and performance-related. “It’s not ideal from the movement. At least I’ve made a small step forward,” said Wellinger.
In the women’s category, the Norwegian Silje Opseth managed a surprising day’s win in Norway’s capital. Katharina Althaus has to wait for a podium place after her corona-related quarantine. Nevertheless, she rated her fifth place with positive feelings. “It worked out quite well. The jumps weren’t perfect, but I’m still very happy with today,” said Althaus.