Opportunity knocks in Ruka for Nordic Combined rivals

Aspiring challengers for the men’s Viessmann FIS Nordic Combined World Cup overall crown have a prime opportunity to make an opening statement in Ruka (FIN) this week in the absence of the top two from last season.

Defending Crystal Globe winner Vinzenz Geiger (GER) is out with a foot ligament injury suffered during training, while five-time World Cup champion Jarl Magnus Riiber (NOR) has retired. Geiger dominated in Ruka last year—podium finishes in the Compact and Gundersen and victory in the Mass Start—to secure the Ruka Tour title, launching a season of seven wins and 13 podiums on his way to the overall crown.

With Geiger missing the opening two World Cup rounds (Ruka and Trondheim) and Riiber gone, the field is wide open. Among the main contenders:

• Johannes Lamparter (AUT), 2022–23 overall champion, still seeking a first Ruka win after five runner‑up finishes.
• Jens Luraas Oftebro (NOR), with two Ruka victories and 10 podiums since 2019.
• Ilkka Herola (FIN), buoyed by a breakthrough World Cup win in Oslo late last season and a second place in Lahti, finishing a career‑best fifth overall.
• Johannes Rydzek (GER), a five‑time Ruka winner who returned to the top step last season with a Gundersen victory.
• Other past Ruka winners in the field include Akito Watabe (JPN, 2017), Terence Weber (GER, 2021) and Julian Schmid (GER, 2022). Germany claimed seven of nine podiums at Ruka last year.

Formats and schedule (all times CET): - Thu 27.11: Men’s Large Hill PCR (13:00) - Fri 28.11: Men’s Individual Large Hill Ski Jumping (12:15), then Individual Compact 7.5 km (15:15) - Sat 29.11: Men’s Individual Large Hill SJ (10:15), then Individual Gundersen 10 km (14:35) - Sun 30.11: Men’s Individual Mass Start 10 km (09:00), then Large Hill SJ (13:00)

With Olympic medals also on the line later this season, Ruka’s trilogy of events offers an ideal platform for a new—or returning—leader to seize early control of the World Cup race.