Ski Jumping: Schmid Dominates Twice in China

Ski Jumping: Schmid Dominates Twice in China

Katharina Schmid achieved a remarkable double victory at the Intercontinental Cup held on the Olympic hill in Zhangjiakou, China. The Oberstdorf native secured two wins with substantial margins.

In this weekend's events, the seven-time world champion Schmid won by 53.9 points (approximately 27 meters) ahead of her teammate Selina Freitag during the Sunday competition. Previously, on Saturday, she had also emerged victorious, finishing with a 53.8 point lead over Chinese competitor Liu Qi. Notably, Freitag had been disqualified in the latter event.

The German team arrived in their best lineup for the Intercontinental Cup events in advance, preparing for the upcoming World Cup competitions slated for the same venue next weekend. Schmid currently leads the overall World Cup standings.

Reflecting on her history with the Zhangjiakou ski jumps, Schmid has mixed memories; she won individual silver at the 2022 Winter Games but faced disqualification in the mixed team event, which led to a medal-less day for the German squad.

In the men's events, veteran ski jumper Noriaki Kasai also competed, finishing in 27th place. His future participation in the World Cup this season remains undecided. Meanwhile, Felix Hoffmann came in second on Saturday, with Luca Roth securing third place on Sunday, contributing to a successful weekend for the German ski jumpers at the Intercontinental Cup.