Nordic Combined - Rehrl misses podium: "It annoys me a bit"

In Austria's Nordic combined team, there was disappointment as they left the first World Cup event without a podium finish. Franz-Josef Rehrl placed fourth in the mass start event in Ruka on Sunday, missing the podium by just 3.3 points. "It annoys me a bit, but I am quite satisfied with my jump. It was a much better conclusion for me. In the skiing part, it’s not yet where I would like it to be," Rehrl commented.

Johannes Lamparter, who was ranked fourth after the cross-country skiing segment, fell back to seventh after the jumping, while Martin Fritz finished in eighth place. The victory went to Vinzenz Geiger from Germany, who thwarted Jarl Magnus Riiber's chance for a 75th career win. Riiber settled for second place in what was also his 100th podium appearance, just 1.1 points behind the winner. Manuel Faißt of Germany took third place, trailing by 1.6 points.

Rehrl expressed mixed feelings about his performance but acknowledged the need to improve his results in the skiing portion. Lamparter described his effort as a "solid performance" and emphasized the need to build confidence in the jumping to compete at the top level. The next competitions will take place next weekend in Lillehammer, providing another opportunity for improvement.