Jarl Magnus Riiber enters the World Cup season opener in Ruka as the favorite

The Ruka World Cup kicks off for the Nordic Combined on Friday. On both Friday and Saturday, the ski jumping segment will take place before the cross-country skiing. On Sunday, the competition will begin with the cross-country race in a mass start, followed by the ski jumping segment.
The favorite for the competition is Norway’s Jarl Magnus Riiber. Riiber has dominated recent seasons, and the same is expected to continue this year. His strength is especially in the ski jumping segment, but a tough cross-country race is also anticipated for Sunday. In Thursday’s provisional competition, he jumped the longest jump with 144 meters. Riiber’s total points for the jump were 150.9.
Also in the mix for top spots are German Johannes Rydzek and the Austrian brothers Stefan and Thomas Rettenegger. Thomas Rettenegger finished third in the provisional competition, accumulating a total of 138.1 points.
The weather conditions in the provisional competition changed rapidly, and Rydzek ended up in 22nd place, while Stefan Rettenegger placed 27th.
In the cross-country segments, it’s worth keeping an eye on Vinzenz Geiger, who was awarded the title of the best skier last year. He is the favorite for Sunday’s mass start. Geiger performed well in the provisional competition, finishing fifth with a total of 132.2 points.

Text: Saara Itäaho