Katharina Althaus wins qualification in Ljubno
Feb 07, 2019·Ski Jumping
Katharina Althaus won the first qualification of the Ladies' World Cup weekend in Ljubno (SLO). With the longest jump of the day of 89.5 m (136.4 points), the Oberstdorf-native took the win ahead of Slovenia's Ursa Bogataj (87 m; 131.4 points) and Russia's Lidiia Iakovleva (86 m; 129.1 points).
Eva Pinkelnig of Austria came in fourth, followed by Norway's Maren Lundby. With Nika Kriznar, a second Slovene, besides Ursa Bogataj, finished in the Top 6.
With her win today, Althaus showed that she is ready to bounce back in the fight for the yellow bib. She is currently second with 867 points, behind Norwegian Maren Lundby (988 points). With top results in Ljubno, Althaus would be able to remain within striking distance to Lundby or get closer to the leader in the race for the overall World Cup title.
Maja Vtic, who already won in Ljubno, Elena Runggaldier of Italy and Lea Lemare of France are among those, who could not qualify for the competition.
Daniela Iraschko-Stolz of Austria, who was diagnosed with atypical pneumonia, will not be competing this weekend. According to Dr. Stefan Hainzl of the Austrian Ski Association, this is a "less severe form of bacterial pneumonia that is well treatable." Iraschko-Stolz will have to take a break and will start training again next week if the healing process is positive. It is not sure yet, whether she will be able to compete in the World Cup in Oberstdorf (GER) but it is expected that she will be fit again for the World Championships in Seefeld.
Three World Cups competitions are held in Ljubno this weekend, including a team event on Saturday. All three competitions start at 2 pm CET.
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