Ski jumping

Prevc wins in Willingen, ÖSV Eagles left behind

Domen Prevc(Bild: EPA/FABIAN STRAUCH)

Domen Prevc dominated the Olympic dress rehearsal for ski jumpers, winning both competitions on the large hill in Willingen with ease. On Sunday, the Slovenian high-flyer celebrated his eleventh victory of the season with a 31.7-point lead over Japan's Ren Nikaido. Third place went to Germany's Philipp Raimund. The ÖSV Eagles did not make it into the top ten, with Daniel Tschofenig finishing twelfth as the best Austrian.

Eight days before the first Olympic competition in Predazzo, Prevc once again demonstrated his exceptional status. The Slovenian was already in the lead after the first jump of 147 meters and, despite a shortened run-up, followed up with a jump of 152 meters. Only Nikaido managed to jump half a meter further.

Here are the detailed results:

Austrians not in the top ten
In the absence of Olympic starters Jan Hörl and Stephan Embacher, the Austrians were unable to compete for the top places on the Mühlenkopf ski jump. Tschofenig was the best, finishing twelfth, but he was dissatisfied. "Unfortunately, something is still not quite right with the jumps. That was unfortunately a step backwards," explained last winter's overall World Cup winner in an interview with ORF. Manuel Fettner, Jonas Schuster, and Maximilian Ortner followed in 14th, 15th, and 17th place.

  Stefan Kraft, who was 14th the day before, did not make it past 29th place. "Something isn't quite right. I don't think I've been unlucky four or six times. I imagined the trip would be different," said the three-time overall World Cup winner.

In the women's competition, Eirin Maria Kvandal was crowned double winner in Willingen. After jumps of 136 and 138.5 meters, the Norwegian beat Japan's Nozomi Maruyama by 7.9 points to take second place. World Cup leader Nika Prevc improved to finish on the podium thanks to a 146-meter jump. Julia Mühlbacher, the only Austrian at the start, finished in 13th place, as she did the day before. Lisa Eder withdrew from the competition due to health reasons.