Jarl Riiber returns to his winning ways in Otepää
Jan 05, 2019·Nordic Combined
Jarl Riiber proved unbeatable once more with a clear demonstration at the first-ever Nordic Combined World Cup in Otepää (EST). Riiber raced in a group with Japan's Akito Watabe, Austrians Franz-Josef Rehrl and Mario Seidl and Espen Bjørnstad (NOR) for the most part but his attack on the last lap could not be matched by any of the other athletes. Akito Watabe (JPN) finally returned to the podium by capturing the second place, +3.2 seconds after Riiber and Martin Fritz stormed to the third place on the last lap, overtaking compatriots Seidl and Rehrl on the way. He finished five seconds after the winner.
The wind had picked up considerably on the second day of the weekend in Otepää and therefore it was not possible to hold the jumping round on the HS 97 normal hill in the morning. Yesterday’s Provisional Competition Round was used for the event today. In a more curious plot twist, Austria’s Franz Josef Rehrl had won the PCR with a distance of 95 metres and a total of 120.4 points - all that with borrowed skis as the Austrian and Italian team’s skis went missing on the plane trip to Estonia.
In Franz-Josef Rehrl’s case, Poland’s Szczepan Kupczak’s skis seemed to been quite the fit for Rehrl as the Austrian even managed to beat jumping prodigy Jarl Magnus Riiber. Three seconds separated the two at the start line after Riiber jumped to 96.5 metres and had a point total of 119.7 points to show for. Riiber’s teammate Espen Bjørnstad was third with 95.5 metres (118.5 p.) and started only eight seconds after Rehrl.
Also Mario Seidl seemed to be doing well on borrowed skis: he achieved the fourth position with a start delay of only nine seconds. Akito Watabe was fifth (+0:11). Other contenders for a podium result were Germany’s fast skier Vinzenz Geiger on position 12, who had to make up 55 seconds, Magnus Moan with a start delay of one minute and 21 seconds, Johannes Rydzek, who started at +1:30 and Alessandro Pittin, who went out on the track ten seconds later.
The race was dominated by tactics in the leading group, where not all of the five athletes in question were ready to do their part of the leading work. While Rehrl and Watabe interchanged in the lead, Riiber managed to conserve energy and stay within the group for most parts of the race. For large parts of the race, the group of five remained unchanged. It was Espen Bjørnstad who had to let go of the other four athletes first, so that the group continued as a foursome in the fourth lap.
Despite some discussions of who should be taking the lead, the group was successful in keeping most of the approaching pursuers off their backs: out of a pursuing trio lead by Vinzenz Geiger, only Martin Fritz managed to close the gap on the fourth lap, all the while Riiber set his attack for the victory in the front of the group.
Akito Watabe stayed on Riiber’s heels and a pack of Austrians fought for the remaining third spot on the podium: Martin Fritz was pushing hard for the first podium result of his career - and won. Mario Seidl had to concede defeat by 0.1 second, PCR winner Franz-Josef Rehrl finished fifth, +7.8 seconds after Riiber. Vinzenz Geiger and Manuel Faißt were a German duo on ranks six and seven and the Top Ten were completed by Espen Bjørnstad, Alessandro Pittin and Johannes Rydzek.
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