Lara Malsiner Claims Back-to-Back Victories in Romania

After achieving her first win in Rasnov on Saturday, Italian skier Lara Malsiner secured a second victory at the FIS Grand Prix, also held in Romania. This time, she triumphed by a slim margin of 1.7 points over Japan's Nozomi Maruyama, who claimed second place. Rounding out the podium were fellow Italians Annika Sieff and Martina Ambrosi, finishing in third and fourth, respectively.

Malsiner reflected on her performance, stating, "Today was a bit more difficult than yesterday because there was a certain expectation today. Nobody expected anything from me yesterday." Just 24 hours after celebrating her inaugural win, Malsiner managed to stay focused despite the pressure. She emphasized, "I tried not to think about it and just concentrate on myself and what I have to do, and that is ski jumping. As I said yesterday, we have a really great atmosphere in the team and a very good team spirit; we grow together as a team and we push each other."

With her second victory in just one day, Malsiner took the lead in the overall Grand Prix standings, amassing 238 points. She now surpasses teammate Annika Sieff (196 points) and Slovenia's Ema Klinec, who finished eighth today with 194 points, as they all prepare for the final Grand Prix competition in Klingenthal, Germany.

The upcoming final is set to be thrilling, especially with Japan's Sara Takanashi (180 points), currently in fourth place, still in contention for the Grand Prix title.

In today's event, Maruyama finished second in the daily rankings, having initially led after the first run. "I was incredibly nervous before my second jump. I don't know whether I should be more happy about second place or a bit disappointed that I lost the lead," she shared. "But of course, I’m very happy with second place, even though my performance yesterday was better."

Meanwhile, Annika Sieff's strong performance, finishing third today after her second-place finish on Saturday, underscored the Italian team's impressive showing at this weekend's competitions. For new coaches Harry Rodlauer and Romed Moroder, it was a nearly flawless summer performance.

Sieff expressed her satisfaction with her results, commenting, "I'm really happy with this weekend here in Rasnov. We have changed a lot of things with our new coaches, and if I implement everything I set out to do, then I will make good jumps. But of course it will be more difficult again in winter when the entire world elite is at the start. But we'll see, we're working well and we're on the right track."

Italy and Japan also occupied the fourth and fifth spots today, with Martina Ambrosi and Kurumi Ichinohe finishing in those positions. Slovenia's Nika Prevc, Tina Erzar, and Ema Klinec rounded out the top eight, finishing sixth, seventh, and eighth respectively. The best Norwegian was Heidi Dyhre Traaserud, finishing in ninth place, followed by Americans Paige Jones and Josie Johnson.

Fans can look forward to the women's Grand Prix final scheduled for October 5 in Klingenthal, followed by a mixed team competition the next day.