Wellinger wards off rivals to win men’s Flying Hill at Vikersund World Cup

Mar 15, 2025·Ski Jumping

Men's Flying Hill winner Andreas Wellinger (GER) at the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup in Vikersund. Photo: NordicFocus

German ski jumper Andreas Wellinger outclassed his field on Saturday to win the men’s Flying Hill at the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup in Vikersund, Norway.

The 29-year-old never let go of his lead from the first round to claim victory on Saturday night with a total of 436.1 points.

Slovenia’s Timi Zajc and Anze Lanisek were second and third with 427.8 and 422.7 points respectively.

Wellinger clinched victory with a second round performance of 229.5m and 227.2 points to extend his lead from his first round jump of 228.0m and 208.9 points.

The German said he did not let the pressure of being the first round leader, and the last athlete to jump in the second round, affect his performance.

It was quite OK because I was totally focused on my jump and I knew what to do– Andreas Wellinger

“It was a perfect day. It was a really long second round and I was expecting more backwind, but the jumps are on a really high level and I’m in a good flying position. It’s a lot of fun," he said.

Saturday’s win puts Wellinger on top of the Raw Air Tournament standings ahead of the last men’s Flying Hill event on Sunday.

“I need to focus on my jumps and my ski flying until the last flight because I do know the situation to be the leader until the last jump,” said Wellinger.

“I’ll try to have some nice flights tomorrow again, and then we’ll see who is going to win.”

Wellinger’s result on Saturday is his second individual World Cup podium of the 2024/25 season after he won the Large Hill event at the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup in Ruka, Finland in December.

The German also has World Cup victories in Mixed Team Large Hill from Lake Placid, USA in December, and from Lillehammer, Norway in November.

Wellinger was also part of the winning German trio that claimed World Cup victory in Super Team Large Hill in front of a home crowd at Titisee-Neustadt in December.

Japan’s Ryoyu Kobayashi finished fourth on Saturday, days after the reigning Olympic champion claimed his third consecutive World Cup victory of the season on Thursday when he topped the men’s Large Hill event in Oslo.

Slovenia’s Domen Prevc finished fifth despite flying the furthest on Saturday night with 239.0m. However, Prevc’s messy landing ruled him out of finishing within the top three.

Current Ski Jumping World Cup standings leader Daniel Tschofenig (AUT) finished in 14th place on Saturday.