Lamparter doubles up in Ruka with dominant Gundersen win

Johannes Lamparter (AUT) produced a dominant performance to win Saturday’s Nordic Combined Gundersen in Ruka (FIN), securing his fourth consecutive individual World Cup victory.

High winds forced the cancellation of the ski jumping round, so the Provisional Competition Round (PCR) determined start gaps. Lamparter won the PCR with 132.5 m for 131.6 points, earning a 14-second lead over compatriot Thomas Rettenegger (AUT) and 31 seconds over Julian Schmid (GER).

On the four-lap 10 km cross-country race, Schmid caught Rettenegger early on lap two and the pair worked together to reduce Lamparter’s advantage, but they never closed to less than about 25 seconds before turning their focus to the fight for second. Schmid proved strongest on the final climb, taking second place 32.7 seconds behind Lamparter, while Rettenegger completed the podium—his second individual World Cup podium and first since Otepää 2023 (Mass Start).

Lamparter’s streak now spans the last two races of 2024–25 (Lahti) and the first two of 2025–26 (Ruka Compact and this Gundersen). In 2022–23, his longest prior streak was three straight wins (Seefeld-Seefeld-Oberstdorf). With defending overall champion Vinzenz Geiger (GER) sidelined by a foot injury and set to miss Ruka and Trondheim, Lamparter established himself as the early favorite for the Crystal Globe.

Quotes: - Lamparter: It was “a perfect day,” noting the strong PCR jump and a high early pace on skis to keep rivals at bay. - Schmid: Tried to close the gap early but conceded Lamparter was too strong; satisfied with second. - Rettenegger: Credited pace control and strong skis for making the podium after leading the PCR jumping standings the previous day.

Notables and incidents: - Ilkka Herola (FIN) advanced from 12th at +1:23 to sixth mid-race, briefly reaching fourth before finishing seventh behind Franz-Josef Rehrl (AUT) and Einar Luraas Oftebro (NOR), who claimed a career-best fourth. - Wendelin Thannheimer (GER) fell on lap one, sliding from fourth at the start to seventh at the finish. - Jens Luraas Oftebro (NOR) skipped the cross-country after a poor PCR jump left him too far back (over eight minutes). - The jumping cancellation came after only 10 of 59 athletes went off the HS142 Large Hill amid crosswinds of 5–7 m/s. Before stoppage, Jiawen Zhao (CHN) impressed again with 126.5 m and Atsushi Narita (JPN) led at 127.0 m.

Next up is Sunday’s Mass Start in Ruka, weather permitting.