Quick Hits
Aug 31, 2018·Nordic Combined
Hannah Kolb calls time on her career
One of the best German Cross-Country Skiing sprinters Hanna Kolb announced the end of her skiing career. "I took a long time after the exciting winter to sort myself out, I have decided to finish my cross-country career," Hanna Kolb wrote on her Facebook page.
Kolb’s debut was at the FIS World Cup in Düsseldorf in December 2009. Since then she started in 115 World Cup competitions during which she finished twice on the World Cup podium in team sprint. Her career best at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships was 11th place in the sprint free in Lahti 2017.
Kolb is also U23 World Champion in sprint free from Erzurum 2012 and U23 bronze medallist in sprint classic from Liberec 2013. She is also 2-time junior bronze medallist. Her focus now turns to her university studies and we wish Hanna good luck in her future endeavours.
Chinese ski jumping team chooses Villach as a training base
To gear up for their home Olympic Games 2022 in Beijing, the Chinese Ski Jumping team is making changes. Former ski jumper and coach of the Austrian men, Heinz Kuttin until the end of the 2017-2018 season, has been announced as the new ladies’ head coach and the Austrian venue of Villach has been chosen as a training centre for the team. Young coach Lukas Tschuschnigg from Klagenfurt has been named the assistant coach.
Eight athletes will live in their own house in Arnoldstein for the next year and hold their training camps in the nearby Villacher Alpen Arena, as well as in the Nordic centre in Planica (SLO), host of the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in 2023. In addition to Kuttin and Tschuschnigg, a Chinese doctor will complete the team.
Stockholm prepared for 2019 World Cup on heels of Åre World Championships
Members of the World Cup Stockholm Organising Committee and city officials met with FIS staff on 4th July at the competition venue of Hammarbybacken for a summer inspection. Next season’s event is scheduled on the heels of the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 2019 in Åre, and the Organising Committees of both events are one and the same, making for a tight turnaround for the Stockholm event.
The FIS Alpine World Ski Championships conclude in Åre on 17th February with the Stockholm World Cup city event following on 19th February. Åre 2019 Event Director Kaj Linde, Sport Director Anders Sundqvist, and Assistant Sports Director Hans Olsson met with FIS Ladies' Chief Race Director Atle Skaardal and the FIS competition management to establish a plan for covering all emerging needs at both venues as they will arise simultaneously.
"I think we have a good plan in place to ensure thorough coverage at both venues with our crew from the team event wrapping up in Åre on Tuesday (12thFebruary) and heading to Stockholm immediately," said Linde.
The past and future success of the Stockholm city event could complement the Swedish capital's Olympic bid for the 2026 Games. The race is included on the long-term FIS World Cup calendars through the 2020/21 season. FIS also sees great potential in the city event continuing in Stockholm at the SkiStar venue for years to come.
"We think this is a great event to hold in major cities around the world. We want our sport to be attractive for fans in big cities," noted Skaardal. “Packed grandstands at the Stockholm World Cup over the past three seasons have shown the local appreciation for this event, and city officials are also on board to support it in future editions.”
Latvian Lady in the Spotlight in Nordic Combined
The weekly series “Ladies in the Spotlight ” introduces the up-and-coming female athletes of the discipline and turned the focus to Latvian athlete Elizabete Stankevica this week. Stankevica is a remarkable figure in the Nordic Combined world as Latvian athletes don’t even have a jumping hill to train on in the country.
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