02/11/26 08:09:00
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02/11 08:07 CST Norway's Jens Luraas Oftebro overcomes time deficit to win gold
in Nordic combined
Norway's Jens Luraas Oftebro overcomes time deficit to win gold in Nordic
combined
By BRIAN MELLEY
Associated Press
TESERO, Italy (AP) --- Jens Luraas Oftebro of Norway won the gold medal in the
Nordic combined normal hill competition after making up a 28-second time
penalty following the ski jump and holding off a chase from his chief rival in
a thrilling 10 kilometer cross-country ski race.
Johannes Lamparter of Austria won silver, 1 second behind, and Eero Hirvonen of
Finland took bronze, 2.5 seconds back.
The unique format of the contest starts with a single ski jump in the morning
where the distance and scoring on style points are converted to a time
advantage in a staggered start cross-country race in the afternoon.
The sport has been contested in every Winter Olympics since their start in 1924
and it's the only event in the Games that does not include women.
Nordic combined is now facing possible extinction from the International
Olympic Committee because it draws a small TV audience and a few nations
dominate competition.
Lamparter entered the contest as the top-ranked skier, followed by Oftebro and
Julian Schmid of Germany.
The top of the field included two sets of brothers, including Oftebro's
sibling, Einar Luraas Oftebro --- the two are called the "Oftebrothers" --- and
Austria's Stefan and Thomas Rettenegger.
Kristjan Ilves of Estonia, though, landed the best jump at 99 meters and earned
a 15-second head start in the cross-country race. Thomas Rettenegger started
second and Ryota Yamamoto of Japan began 19 seconds behind the leader.
Shortly after Ilves took off, the chase was on.
Ilves, ranked 12th in the World Cup with a third-place finish his best of the
season, held off the chasing pack to the halfway mark and was then passed.
Jens Luraas Oftebro, who had been in second then caught a ski tip in fencing
and nearly fell, but managed to recover and take the lead.
Lamparter started 21 seconds back and Hirvonen started 36 seconds back, making
up the biggest deficit of all the medal winners.
Oftebro was part of Norway's winning relay team in the 2022 Beijing Winter
Games and won silver in the large hill event that year. He's won four gold
medals in the World Championships.
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
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