Planica, Slovenia (March 4, 2023) – Men’s Ski Jumping competed in the Team HS138 Event earlier today at the 2023 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships. Andrew Urlaub, Casey Larson, Decker Dean and Erik Belshaw represented the United States during Men’s Ski Jumping’s final competition in Planica. The team earned an 8th place finish, which is the highest result by the United States in the Large Hill World Championships since 1985 in Seefeld, where they finished 5th overall.
During the first round of action, Dean was the first athlete to take the hill for the United States, going 117.0 meters for 105.2 points. Larson was next up, as he put together a 124.5 meter jump for 122.9 points. Urlaub was the third athlete to jump, as he jumped to 125.5 meters for 134.5 points. Belshaw was the fourth and final jumper, as he threw down a 126.5 meter jump for 134.7 points, sending the United States to the final round of competition (497.3 total team points).
In the second round, Dean was able to best his first jump, going 120.0 meters for 107.1 points. Larson followed, jumping to 122.0 meters for 119.3 points. Urlaub added another 114.8 points for the team, after he jumped to 118.0 meters. Belshaw then recorded the longest jump of the day for the United States, as he jumped to 129.0 meters for 136.9 points. This gave the team a total of 975.4 points after two rounds, as they finished 8th overall.
“I’m proud of how hard these guys have been working during World Championships. We almost reached all of the goals we were trying to achieve in Planica, especially today with the team event,” said Men’s and Women’s Ski Jumping Head Coach, Tore Sneli. “All of these guys have set themselves up for success in the future, and we have a great team. I think that they’re really motivated to do well the rest of the season, and continue to improve on the results that they’ve already had this year.”
“My first World Championships was in Lahti, Finland, and that was my first experience competing at a high level event. Since then, I feel that I became stagnant with my results, but I’ve continued to improve as an athlete. This is the first year in a really long time, that I’ve seen immediate results. I feel that as a team this year, we’ve had a lot better of a training plan and a better team dynamic,” said USA Nordic Athlete, Casey Larson. “I thank the Norwegian Ski Jumping Team for that, my new coaches, and my teammates for that as well. I think with getting our eighth place finish at World Championships today, as well as the other great results that we’ve gotten this year, the future is very bright for Ski Jumping in the United States. This is the first year in our partnership with Norway, and I can’t wait for the things to come. My hope is that all of my teammates, as well as myself, will one day be on the podium at a World Cup or World Championships.”
With the conclusion of the Team HS138 Event, Men’s Ski Jumping has wrapped up competition at the 2023 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships. Men’s Ski Jumping will be back in action on March 10th, as they will compete at the first stop in the Raw Air Tournament in Oslo, Norway.
Results
Men’s Ski Jumping Team HS138 Results – World Championships (3/4)
