Ema Klinec is normal hill World Champion

The new women's Ski Jumping World Champion is from Slovenia and her name is Ema Klinec. The 22-year-old, who finished second five times but hasn't won in the World Cup yet, came in ahead of Maren Lundby (NOR) and Sara Takanashi (JPN) in a dramatic competition.

The final round of the women's competition on the normal hill in Oberstdorf was a true nail-biter. Austria's Sara Marita Kramer had a great jump of 109 m in the first round, she could barely avoid a fall and took the lead.
In the final round, the surprisingly strong defending champion Maren Lundby of Norway first claimed the top spot with an outstanding jump. Top favorite Sara Takanashi was 0.2 points behind Lundby. The two best of the first round still had to jump. Slovenia's Ema Klinec and Sara Marita Kramer of Austria.
Klinec was able to take the lead with a strong jump of 100.5 m, Kramer became the tragic figure of the competition. The jury moved the inrun gate down before the final jump of the competition, Kramer landed after 98 m and had some problems at the landing - fourth place.

Klinec was totally overjoyed after her first big win and cried tears of joy after the competition: "I can't say anything right now, I can't believe what happened and I'm just overwhelmed and more than happy", she said right after her surprising success.
For defending champion Maren Lundby this second place was her best individual result this winter. Lundby was in top shape at the perfect time and won this silver medal in a disappointing season. "This season has been a struggle, so this silver medal actually means more for me than the gold in Seefeld. I’ve worked really hard, and it paid off here in Oberstdorf. My big goal for this season has been this Championships. I hope for more fun days", said Lundby.

The result was a huge disappointment for Sara Marita Kramer and the Austrian team, which issued a protest and was not satisfied at all with the job of the jury today. "It is not comprehensible, that the bar was moved down before Marita Kramer, the conditions didn't change, it was not justified. This was not a sporting decision, the competition was decided by the jury. But of course, I congratulate the three medalists, they were jumping very well and they deserved their medals", said head coach Harry Rodlauer.

The women's team event (normal hill) will start tomorrow at 5:15 pm CET.

Full results