Freitag turned 'tough' last season into Trondheim success: 'I got my good jump back'

Mar 05, 2025·Ski Jumping

Last season, Selina Freitag (GER) finished 18th in the overall Viessmann FIS Ski Jumping World Cup ranking, with a Normal Hill seventh place in Trondheim, Norway, in March 2024 as her best result.

One year later, the 23-year-old is back in Trondheim for the 2025 FIS World Nordic Ski Championships, and in a completely different situation after getting her "good jump back".

At No.3 in the World Cup standings, Freitag finished second in the Women's Normal Hill to claim her first World Championships medal on Friday. On Saturday, she won bronze in the Women's Team Normal Hill together with Juliane Seyfarth, Katharina Schmid and Agnes Reisch.

"It's crazy, I didn't expect that," Freitag said.

"The World Championships is a big event where anything can happen. And the training wasn't that good, the quality wasn't at the highest level.

Then I had two good jumps in the (Normal Hill) competition and it was like 'wow, what happened, I can do it' and I feel amazing. I slept like a baby at night (between the competition days). It's great.– Selina Freitag (GER)

At the Planica (SLO) 2023 World Championships, she had won two gold medals in the team events but had to settle for a fourth place in the Normal Hill, 5.4 points from a medal.

Two years later, she pulled off two strong jumps of 99m and 103.5m and a combined total of 250.8 points to get her hands on the milestone first medal, 8.4 points behind the winner, Nika Prevc (SLO), in front of the big crowds at the Granaasen Ski Center.

"I was not really nervous, I was happy that so many people came to watch us," Freitag said.

"I saw the crowd at the Cross-Country stadium and was like 'come on, come to us' and a lot of them did. And they were really loud, especially for the Norwegian girls, it's really cool."

Freitag with her first individual medal; a Normal Hill silver @NordicFocus

Got her jump back

Freitag, who had finished fifth in the 2022/2023 overall standings before the challenging last season, said that "many things" had changed over the past year.

She points at the appointment of the 1991 Men's Normal Hill World champion and three-time Olympic medallist Heinz Kuttin (AUT) as the Germany women's team coach last spring as one of the main factors for reaching podiums again.

"He came in with a lot of new staff and first I tested a lot of different skis and bindings. There was a lot to do," Freitag said.

I said to him, 'I want to have my jump back'. Last year was really hard and tough season for me and I wanted to have my good jumps back. From the table, from the take off, I have done a lot of hard work and now I have two medals, it's amazing.– Selina Freitag (GER)

Selina Freitag jumps for a Team Normal Hill medal @NordicFocus

Bringing bronze to Germany

Going as Germany's No.4 in the Team competition, Freitag started with a 95.5m jump that gave 116.9 points and sealed the medal with a 96m jump that she was awarded 121.6 points for – the fifth highest of the day.

"It's unbelievable. I don't have words for this," she said.

"I'm really happy. The jumping was not on as a high level as (on Friday) – the first jump was not that good – but the second jump was really good and to share a medal with the team is amazing and we were just so happy."

Joy for Germany: Selina Freitag, Katharina Schmid, Juliane Seyfarth and Agnes Reisch celebrate their Team Normal Hill bronze medal @NordicFocus

Germany's rising star said she just felt calm at the top of the hill before her jumps, even when the medal depended on her.

"I'm really cool, I'm really not stressed, I'm peaceful, I know that hard work is coming out, two medals is great."

Germany's bronze medallists (from left): Agnes Reisch, Selina Freitag, Katharina Schmid, Juliane Seyfarth @NordicFocus

Tips from teammate Schmid

Born in Breitenbrunn, in the Ore Mountains, just by the Czech border, she is the little sister of former ski jumper Richard Freitag (GER), a Team Large Hill and Mixed Team Normal Hill World champion with a PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games Team Large Hill silver medal to his name.

She made her Viessmann FIS Ski Jumping World Cup debut in Oberstdorf, Germany, in February 2019, and her first top-10 in Lillehammer (NOR) in December 2022. The first individual podium came in Ljubno (SLO) in January 2023 and at 10 podiums two year later, German Ski Jumping fans hope that she will be the next big thing after seven-time World champion Katharina Schmid (GER), 28.

"I've learned a lot from Katharina," Freitag said about her teammate, who is also a two-time Olympic Normal Hill silver medallist.

"She always gives me some tips about the jumping, especially for the landing because it's one thing she can do very well and I'm not at that level.

I'm just doing my jumps and want to perform good, and this is how the medals are coming.– Selina Freitag (GER)

Germany's Selina Freitag (left) on the individual Normal Hill podium, with Slovenia's winner Nika Prevc (middle) and bronze medallist Anna Odine Stroem from Norway (right) @NordicFocus

Dreams of Olympic glory

Freitag has won three World Cup competitions as part of a team but has yet to claim an individual victory. She is not far off though, having finished in second place four times only in February – every time behind the outstanding overall World Cup leader Prevc, although only 2.5 points behind in the Normal Hill in Hinzenbach (AUT).

It does not stop Selina from aiming at her next career milestone; a victory. She dreams about it coming at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games.

"I can say that I've done it all (in Friday's Normal Hill) and maybe Nika Prevc will have to do some mistakes," she said.

"We are all so close together and it's like everyone can stand at the podium but not everyone can stand at the top of it. Nika is in such good shape and tough to challenge."

The Ski Jumping at Trondheim 2025 continues on Wednesday with the Mixed Team Large Hill.

Click here for full schedule and results from the World Championships.