OBERWIESENTHAL – For the second consecutive year not only the organizers, but also the athletes and fans at the German Fichtelberg were lucky with the weather: winter sports at 30°C heat and sun – that is how the Summer Grand Prix Nordic Combined weekend in Oberwiesenthal looked like. Held in conjunction with the Continental Cup Ski Jumping Women, the international event in Germany's highest city drew guests from all over Central Europe: 11,500 people watched the three day event with four competitions spread from Friday to Sunday.
SKI JUMPING
Women's duo dominates ski jumpers
In the Women’s Continental Cup the Lucile Morat clinched the victory on both days. On Friday, the 15-year-old Frenchwoman from Courchevel won with 231.8 points, 10.2 points ahead of Katharina Althaus. On Saturday she extended her lead to 18.3 points with a total of 238.8 points. Third on Friday was Italian Lara Malsiner, on Saturday Olympic champion Carina Vogt finally jumped on the podium after reaching fifth place on Friday.
NORDIC COMBINATION
Saxon-Express and Norwegians dominated
In Saturday’s Nordic Combined competition, the spectators at the hill and on the town square in Oberwiesenthal witnessed a Saxon Match: Based on the best team result in jumping, Bjoern Kircheisen and Eric Frenzel were the first ones on the track with a one second lead. Thanks to a strong running performance, both were able to extend their lead to a winning 18.8 seconds in the team sprint ahead of the Norwegian duo Jan Schmid/Magnus Moan. The third place went to Austrian Bernhard Gruber and Philipp Orter. Thousands of spectators had gathered for the ideal start time of 7pm on the town square in order to cheer for the athletes - the party after the race went on all the way into the night.
During the conclusion of the competitions on Sunday, Norwegian Jarl Magnus Riiber dominated the field. A great jump over 101m secured him a one-minute lead ahead of the competition, securing him the victory all the way into the finish. Behind him a fierce race for the podium places took place, with Mario Seidl (AUT) winning against veteran Bjoern Kircheisen in the end.
Professional event despite structural challenges
There have been many questions ahead of the event: How would the organizing WSC Erzgebirge Oberwiesenthal cope with the infrastructural challenges? This worry referred to the lack of the ski lift, which was demolished just ahead of the competition due to a much-needed modernization. After three days of competition one thing was certain: there were no restrictions. Thanks to the support of strong partners and especially the Automotive Center Erzgebirge in Schwarzenberg, which willingly provided the required shuttle buses, the shuttle service ran professionally and without interruption.
The hill itself was ready on time for the big race, said WSC president Peter Riedel: "We have to thank not only our hard-working helpers and volunteers, but also the city for the new, professional logistics. The city has spared no effort to provide us with a competition-ready hill, despite the extensive construction projects going on."
Praise from all sides
In addition to numerous journalists from print, radio, online and TV, many representatives from business and politics also attended the weekend Oberwiesenthal, including, i.a., State Secretary Stefan Brangs or District Administrator Frank Vogel. "For me and the whole team this backing from the media and the decision-makers is an appreciation of the hard work here at Fichtelberg", says Peter Riedel. Praise came also from the International Ski Federation, which showed seemed once again impressed by the work in Oberwiesenthal and which hinted to future competitions in the Saxon site. In order to promote the events even better in the future, the WSC plans to cooperate with football club FC Erzgebirge Aue in the future. Already on August 12, WSC president Riedel was able to promote the Summer Grand Prix in front of 8,000 fans at the Erzgebirgs-Stadium - a future-oriented cooperation in the spirit of the guiding principle of the WSC, "United for the Erzgebirge"
