Men’s Nordic Combined Normal Hill/10km Recap: Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022

Zhangjiakou, China (February 9, 2022) – Men’s Nordic Combined at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 got under way Wednesday afternoon in Zhangjiakou with the Normal Hill/10km competition. All four USA Nordic athletes were able to card top 30 finishes, with two finishing in the top 20.

After finishing 41st in the Normal Hill/10km at the Olympics in PyeongChang in 2018, Ben Loomis was able to record a new personal best finishing 15th overall at this year’s Games. Staring the day off in jumping, Loomis recorded a 94.5 meter jump, as the judges awarded him 105.6 points. This put him in 17th to start the 10km race, +1:50 behind the leader. Loomis was then able to make up some ground, as he finished 15th overall, with a total time of 26:57.8 on the course.

“I’m really happy with finishing 15th overall today. I wasn’t totally satisfied with my jumping, but I was able to make up for that in the race,” said Loomis. “Overall, it was a great day. I’m definitely feeling more confident going into the next events.”

In his first-ever Olympic Winter Games, Jared Shumate was close behind Loomis, as he finished 19th overall. On the hill, Shumate was able to record a 93.5 meter jump, giving him a total of 99.2 points. This put Shumate in 24th and +2:15 behind the leader to start the 10km race, as he then climbed to finish 19th overall with a total time 27:10.0.

“My jumping wasn’t quite as good as I would have hoped for today, but I felt that I had a pretty solid race,” said Shumate. “I had a goal set to get top 20 in the Olympics at the start of this season, and I’m happy to have accomplished that. Starting off the games with a 19th overall finish is pretty satisfying.”

Stephen Schumann and Taylor Fletcher were neck-and-neck, in both jumping and the 10km race. Schumann was able to tally an 88.5 meter jump, giving him 86.4 points and placing him +3:06 behind the leader, starting the 10km in 33rd. Fletcher carded a 86.5 meter jump that gave him 83.3 points, placing him in 34th and +3:19 behind the leader.

Fletcher was then able to finish 24th overall with a time of 27:50.9, giving him his highest finish ever in the Normal Hill/10km as a four-time Olympian. Schumann was close behind, as he finished 25th overall in his first-ever Olympic Winter Games with a total time of 27:52.4.

“I’m pretty psyched about how today went, I think it was probably one of my best events this year. I had a jump that was better than average for me, which put me into a good position for the race,” said Schumann. “I had a great time, I actually really enjoyed the competition today. This event was definitely a confidence booster, I’m excited to see what happens with the large hill.”

Men’s Nordic Combined competition continues on Tuesday, Feb. 15th with the Large Hill/10km competition. Check below to see how you can watch and support USA Nordic as they continue to compete at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022.

Results

Normal Hill/10km

How to Watch – Men’s Nordic Combined Schedule

Tuesday, February 15th
2:00am EST – Men’s Nordic Combined Individual Large Hill – Zhangjiakou, China

6:00am EST – Men’s Nordic Combined Individual 10km – Zhangjiakou, China

Thursday, February 17th
2:00am EST – Men’s Nordic Combined Team Large Hill – Zhangjiakou, China

6:00am EST – Men’s Nordic Combined Team 4×5 10km – Zhangjiakou, China

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