The Nordic combined tests both flying ability and stamina on the cross-country course. Here’s how to catch the Normal Hill/10km competition.
Whereas the Alpine combined features a heat of downhill and a heat of slalom, Nordic combined is an even more varied test of skill sets. Featuring a round on the ski jump and a 10-kilometer cross-country race, the Nordic combined tests fitness, form, nerve and stamina.
The first of three competitions in the Nordic combined is the Normal Hill/10km race. There is also a Large Hill/10km variant and a team competition featuring jumps off the large hill and a relay race with five-kilometer legs.
The event works on the Gundersen method, which assesses a relative distance-to-time ratio. This allows for the conversion of ski jump results into time gaps to start the cross-country section.
Who enters this year’s Normal Hill/10km as the favorite?
Four years ago, Germany’s Eric Frenzel swooped in to snatch the Olympic gold on the normal hill. Frenzel won ahead of Japanese star Akito Watabe and Norway’s Magnus Krog. Frenzel has extra motivation to become the first repeat winner of the Normal Hill/10km since East German skier Ulrich Wehling won three straight Olympic gold medals in the event between 1972 and 1980. But the German is also currently ranked just eighth on the FIS World Cup circuit.
A silver medalist from four years ago, Watabe is currently the top-ranked specialist on the tour. Watabe represents Japan’s great hope for the top step of the podium that it has never previously achieved in the Nordic combined.
Then there is a quartet of Norwegians who each have a shot at the podium. Jan Schmid, Jørgen Graabak, Espen Andersen, and Jarl Magnus Riiber are all in the top 10 of the FIS World CUp standings at the moment. They will be the favorites heading into the team competition, and a podium sweep wouldn’t be entirely out of the realm of possibility in this event.
Next: What’s the difference between Ski Jumping & Freestyle Skiing?
Here’s how you can watch the Olympic men’s Nordic combined Normal Hill/10km race online.
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 14
Time: 3:45 a.m. ET
Location: Pyeongchang, South Korea
Venue: Alpensia Alpine Centre
Live Stream: NBC Olympics, FuboTV
Keep it tuned in here are we bring you the latest live streams and updated results for each ski jumping event over the course of the 2018 Winter Olympics.