Park City, Utah (February 4, 2024) – Men’s and Women’s Ski Jumping competed at the World Cup events in Willingen, Germany, this past weekend, with Men’s and Women’s Nordic Combined competing at the World Cup events in Seefeld, Austria.
For Nordic Combined, the weekend was highlighted by Alexa Brebec and Ben Loomis, as Brabec recorded her first-ever top 10 finish with Loomis recording a top 15 finish of his own. Annika Belshaw then recorded her highest World Cup finish of the season, placing 20th overall in Willingen, with Sam Macuga recording her first-ever individual World Cup points for Women’s Ski Jumping.
Men’s Ski Jumping
Andrew Urlaub, Casey Larson, Decker Dean and Kevin Bickner all represented the United States at the Men’s Ski Jumping World Cup events in Willingen, Germany. During the HS147 Qualification on Friday, February 2nd, Larson finished 19th overall, soaring to 137.0 meters for 102.3 points. Bickner was next to qualify in 48th, as he went 116.5 meters for 68.2 points. Dean and Urlaub finished just outside of qualification, with Dean coming in 53rd (107.5 meters, 53.8 points) and Urlaub close behind in 56th (101.0 meters, 40.8 points). The Individual HS147 World Cup was held the next day on Saturday, February 3rd, as Larson and Bickner took the hill. Both athletes were unable to advance to the final round, as Larson finished 31st overall (127.0 meters, 82.6 points) and Bickner placed 41st (123.5 meters, 74.4 points).
Action in Willingen wrapped up on Sunday, February 4th, as athletes first competed in the HS147 Qualification. Bickner qualified 32nd overall (128.0 meters, 82.0 points), with Larson coming in 45th (114.0 meters, 59.1 points) and Dean taking the final spot in 50th (101.0 meters, 45.9 points). Urlaub was unable to qualify, coming in 57th with a jump of 104.5 meters for 33.2 points. Later in the day, during the Individual HS147 World Cup, Larson finished 35th overall (125.0 meters, 77.5 points), with Bickner coming in 41st (116.0 meters, 70.3 points) and Dean coming in 46th (112.5 meters, 50.3 points), ending their time in Willingen.
Women’s Ski Jumping
Women’s Ski Jumping started things off in Willingen with an HS147 Qualification on Friday, February 2nd. All three athletes representing the United States were able to qualify, with Annika Belshaw coming in 28th (102.0 meters, 32.8 points), with Paige Jones right behind in 29th (98.5 meters, 21.6 points) and Sam Macuga in 32nd (90.0 meters, 9.3 points). The Individual HS147 World Cup was held on Saturday, February 3rd, as Belshaw, Macuga and Jones took the hill. Belshaw jumped to 112.5 meters for 59.3 points in the first round, as she was able to advance to the final round. Jones placed 32nd (92.0, 13.9 points) and Macuga placed 33rd (88.0 meters, 8.2 points), as they ended their day after the first round. Belshaw then jumped to 99.5 meters for 40.6 points in the second round, giving her 99.9 points on the day, as she finished 20th overall and recorded her highest individual World Cup finish of the season.
The final day of competition came on Sunday, February 4th, as athletes competed in another HS147 Qualification and Individual HS147 World Cup. Belshaw qualified in 27th (106.5 meters, 34.7 points), with Jones right behind in 28th (101.5 meters, 31.6 points) and Macuga rounding things out in 31st (89.5 meters, 6.8 points). The Individual HS147 World Cup came later in the day on Sunday, with Jones finishing her day after the first round, as she placed 32nd overall with a 95.0 meter jump for 26.0 points. Belshaw and Macuga were able to advance to the final round, with Belshaw going 122.5 meters for 70.6 points and Macuga putting together a 104.5 meter jump for 36.6 points. In the final round, Belshaw went 103.5 meters for 33.4 points, giving her 104.0 total points and a 26th place finish. Macuga finished 29th overall, as she went 106.0 meters for 35.2 points, giving her 71.8 total points on the day and her first-ever individual World Cup points.
Men’s Nordic Combined
Men’s Nordic Combined kicked-off the Seefeld Triple on Friday, February 2nd, with athletes competing in the HS109/7.5km World Cup. Stephen Schumann recorded the best jump of the day, putting himself in the 37th position after going 99.0 meters for 105.3 points. Grant Andrews landed in 47th (99.0 meters, 98.7 points), with Ben Loomis in 48th (93.5 meters, 98.4 points) and Niklas Malacinski in 49th (92.0 meters, 97.8 points). In the 7.5km race, Schumann was able to ski up to finish 33rd overall (19:01.0 total time), with Malacinski close behind in 37th (18:45.7 total time). Andrews then skied up to finish 43rd (19:30.1), with Loomis rounding things off in 46th (19:44.0).
The weekend continued with a HS109/10km World Cup on Saturday, February 3rd. On the hill, Loomis jumped to 15th overall, going 99.0 meters for 131.3 points. Grant Andrews jumped to 23rd overall (99.0 meters, 122.8 points), with Schumann coming in 33rd (99.0 meters, 116.5 points) and Malacinski coming in 42nd (91.5 meters, 108.1 points). Loomis was then able to maintain his position in the 10km, placing 15th overall with a total time of 25:56.2. Schumann placed 28th overall (25:44.1 total time), with Andrews coming in 32nd (26:58.7 total time) and Malacinski coming in 33rd (26:07.9 total time).
Due to inclement weather, the ski jumping portion of Sunday’s HS109/12.5km World Cup was cancelled, and the jumps from the Provisional Competition Round held on Thursday, February 1st, were used. Malacinski placed 23rd overall (35:27.8 total time) in the 12.5km, Loomis placed 24th (36:02.7 total time), with Schumann in 33rd (36:30.1 total time) and Andrews in 34th (37:01.3), as the foursome ended their time in Seefeld, Austria.
Women’s Nordic Combined
Competition in Seefeld got underway on Friday, February 2nd, as athletes took the hill for the HS109/5km World Cup event. Alexa Brabec was able to jump to 13th overall, as she put together a 90.5 meter jump for 78.1 points. Annika Malacinski landed in the 17th position, after going 90.0 meters for 71.1 points. During the 5km race, Brabec was able to ski up three positions, finishing 10th overall with a total time of 15:34.9, carding a new World Cup personal best and her first-ever top 10 finish. Malacinski was close behind in 13th, finishing the course in 15:22.0, as she notched her seventh top 15 finish of the season.
The final World Cup of the weekend came on Saturday, February 3rd, as athletes competed in the Compact HS109/5km event. Brabec jumped to 87.0 meters for 92.1 points, landing her in the 10th position for the 5km race. Malacinski was disqualified during the ski jumping portion of the competition. During the 5km, Brabec added another great result to her weekend, placing 12th overall with a total time of 16:03.6.
