Too much wind in Ruka — men’s ski jumping canceled

Strong winds disrupted the men’s Ski Jumping World Cup weekend in Ruka, Finland. On Saturday, the competition could be held only as a single-round event due to weather, and on Sunday the entire competition was canceled for safety reasons.

According to the organizers, wind gusts throughout Sunday first forced the cancellation of qualification. Shortly afterwards, the Nordic combined mass-start competition also lost its decisive jumping round because conditions were too dangerous. At 15:10, the jury led by FIS race director Sandro Pertile made the final call to cancel Sunday’s men’s ski jumping competition.

German jumper Andreas Wellinger voiced disappointment, saying parts of the day looked jumpable but that conditions were hard to judge and the decision came quickly. The FIS is considering rescheduling the canceled event, with Lahti mentioned as a possible venue later in the season.

Saturday’s men’s competition in Ruka had already been curtailed to one counting round, with Anže Lanišek declared the winner. The turbulent weekend highlighted the impact of weather on early-season events in the far north and left the World Cup calendar in flux pending a possible make-up round.