Seefeld. On Sunday in Seefeld, the ÖSV combined teams once once more had to bow to the Norwegian superiority led by Jarl Magnus Riiber. Stefan Rettenegger, in third place, ensured a conciliatory triple finish. Last year’s winner Johannes Lamparter came in fourth place in front of 3,500 fans. The Tyrolean, who fell on the completely softened cross-country ski trail, like many others, criticized the borderline conditions in the warm spring weather with clear words.
Riiber, who won the competition three-pack for the third time following 2020 and 2021 with his seventh World Cup success in a row, also received criticism. “I think it was probably the worst conditions I’ve ever had in cross-country skiing. That’s why I’m even happier to be at the top,” said the Norwegian following his eleventh win of the season. With double points, he extended his lead in the overall standings even more significantly.
The jumping was canceled due to strong winds, which is why Thursday’s PCR round was counted. The Austrians did very well in this. The 18-second lead, including bonus points for his victories on Friday and Saturday, should ultimately be enough for Riiber to win. The double world champion won safely following 12.5 km, as on the previous two days, ahead of his compatriot Jörgen Graabak. He stormed forward from seventh place and initially left Lamparter behind and in the final phase also Rettenegger.
The latter drew a positive conclusion following a tough fight in adverse conditions. “It was incredibly hard, the trail was so extremely deep, I don’t think I’ve ever experienced that before. But the torture paid off, I’m on the podium, that’s very, very cool,” said the Salzburg native. His first podium finish in Seefeld was a nice end to a not-so-easy weekend, added Pongauer, who has been 22 since Saturday.
Image: GEPA/Mathias Mandl
“I don’t understand it at all”
Lamparter, who was the same age, didn’t particularly mourn his missed podium place, not least because of his two-week illness break beforehand. “There wasn’t anything more possible today, I didn’t feel like I might go all the way over there and bite. I just noticed that I’m not in that good shape yet,” said the Tyrolean. He still leaves Seefeld with a good feeling. “I enjoyed the whole thing, there were a lot of people there and we had fantastic weather.”
Of course, he also criticized the conditions: “I don’t understand at all why you don’t add salt the evening before. It’s not quite World Cup-worthy, you have other options to prepare the slope perfectly, that wasn’t the case today.” However, his fall on one of the very tricky runs due to the soft snow did not have a decisive influence on the outcome of the race, said Lamparter.
ÖSV coach Christoph Bieler agreed with the general tenor. “It’s worthy of the World Cup, but it just looks messy for one or two athletes. It’s a shame that they can’t manage to improve it a bit for us as the strongest jumper nation and not so good runners. That would have benefited us.” said Bieler. But that is not a criticism of the organizer or the ÖSV. “The decision is made by the jury. But it’s a bit of a stupid picture that we don’t have more influence.”
Rettenegger’s second third place following Lamparter’s on Friday put him in a mild mood: “Basically, we are very happy with two third places. With Jo’s illness, more was not realistic. But Stefan is a worthy man on the podium, he is deserves to stand next to the two top athletes,” said Bieler.
