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Kraft and Lanišek on top in Falun
At the two individual World Cup events in Falun, Stefan Kraft claimed victory on the normal hill, while Anže Lanišek secured the large hill win and took over the yellow bib as overall World Cup leader. A new hill record and a brief technical incident added extra attention to an already noteworthy midweek competitions in Sweden.
As preparation for the Nordic World Ski Championships, two individual World Cup competitions were held on Tuesday and Wednesday in Falun, Sweden. Both the normal hill and large hill events offered exciting performances, records and an unexpected interruption.
Kraft takes the win on the normal hill – Raimund sets a new hill record
Stefan Kraft took the victory on the normal hill. Already in qualification, the Austrian had shown with a solid second place that he felt comfortable on the smaller hill in Falun. Only his teammate Daniel Tschofenig performed better in that round and secured the qualification win.
Stefan Kraft took the victory on the normal hill. Already in qualification, the Austrian had shown with a solid second place that he felt comfortable on the smaller hill in Falun. Only his teammate Daniel Tschofenig performed better in that round and secured the qualification win.
One of the standout moments came from Philipp Raimund: the German set a new hill record with 99.5 metres in the second round, which earned him third place in the first of the two competitions in Falun. Between Kraft and Raimund, Anže Lanišek delivered a strong performance to take second place, underlining his ambitions for the season.
See the official results - Normal hill
See the official results - Normal hill
First win of the season for Lanišek
The large hill event followed just one day later and brought some surprising moments in the second round. Stephan Embacher, sixth after the first round, clearly flew past the green line. Due to technical problems, however, his score did not appear at first. Two more athletes completed their jumps before the competition was interrupted to resolve the issue. Only then it became clear: Embacher had taken the lead. After already winning the day’s qualification, the young Austrian had shown he was capable of fighting for a podium. In the end, he celebrated the first World Cup podium of his career with a strong second place.
The large hill event followed just one day later and brought some surprising moments in the second round. Stephan Embacher, sixth after the first round, clearly flew past the green line. Due to technical problems, however, his score did not appear at first. Two more athletes completed their jumps before the competition was interrupted to resolve the issue. Only then it became clear: Embacher had taken the lead. After already winning the day’s qualification, the young Austrian had shown he was capable of fighting for a podium. In the end, he celebrated the first World Cup podium of his career with a strong second place.
The only athlete ahead of him was Anže Lanišek. The Slovenian showed excellent form, secured his first World Cup victory of the season and took over the yellow bib of the overall leader.
A brief moment of concern occurred earlier in the day when Domen Prevc crashed in the outrun during training. Despite visible scrapes, he competed in qualification and delivered an impressive performance in the competition, earning himself a strong third place.
A brief moment of concern occurred earlier in the day when Domen Prevc crashed in the outrun during training. Despite visible scrapes, he competed in qualification and delivered an impressive performance in the competition, earning himself a strong third place.
With his victory on the normal hill, Stefan Kraft has now accumulated 15,811 World Cup points, making him the athlete with the most total points in World Cup history.
The next stop follows soon: the World Cup continues in Ruka (Finland) this coming weekend.
The next stop follows soon: the World Cup continues in Ruka (Finland) this coming weekend.