Nordic Combined : Yamamoto out in front, the top teams discover each other before the 10 km
The first clear verdict in the individual jumping competition on the big hill: Ryota Yamamoto will start in the lead. The Japanese will start eight seconds ahead of Johannes Lamparter, and 16 ahead of Norway’s Andreas Skoglund. The gaps are small, but the battle promises to be head-on.
Johannes Lamparter, a solid second (136.0 pts), was both satisfied and cautious in the Austrian press: “I’m very happy with my jump. I was able to reproduce in competition exactly what I had shown in training” , he declared in the columns of Weekend.at. But the Tyrolean is keeping a cool head: “Of course, I know that Jens isn’t far behind – and he’s one of the best. A direct reference to Jens Luraas Oftebro, fifth at 22 seconds, who hailed on NRK “one of the best things [he] could have hoped for”, with “an ideal starting position”.
Third at 16 seconds, Andreas Skoglund admitted to the Norwegian television cameras that he had jumped with apprehension: “I was a bit afraid of ruining everything in the competition. Now placed, the Scandinavian says he is “relieved” and ready to go on the offensive on his skis.
Sixth at 24 seconds (144.0 pts), Kristjan Ilves remains in ambush. As reported in the Estonian press, the combination player appeared frustrated but lucid in the rackets. However, he accepted his strategy: “My jump was perhaps too aggressive, but it’s better than the opposite. Ahead of the 10km, the Estonian remains confident: “Nothing’s decided yet, it’s going to be a close race. He stressed that he will be starting “with the best cross-country skiers”, an ideal scenario for staying in touch from the very first kilometres.
On the Finnish side, the tone was rougher. Seventh at 32 seconds after a jump of 130.5 m, Ilkka Herola did not mince his words on Yle (quoted by Ilta-Samona): “It was a failed jump, impossible to get anything out of it. He expects “a fast race” where “the battle for the medals will be between the leaders”. His compatriot Eero Hirvonen, eighth at 43 seconds, was more positive: “It was the best I could do. I’m really proud of my performance.
Behind Yamamoto, everything remains open: Lamparter, Skoglund and Oftebro are all within 14 seconds of each other.
