World Cup ski jumping in Ruka canceled due to wind: “No one listened”

The Sunday Ski Jumping World Cup competition in Ruka was called off due to excessive wind, ending a turbulent weekend in northern Finland.

Polish broadcaster TVP Sport’s Michał Chmielewski summed up the frustration: “0.5 rounds on Friday, 3.5 rounds on Saturday, 0 rounds on Sunday, 13 World Cup points for a Pole, 1 Polish jumper in the points, 5 days until Wisła, which is waiting and counting on a celebration.” He also mocked the poor attendance: “In a burst of emotion I counted all the fans under Rukatunturi. There are 35. Regards.”

Criticism also focused on contingency planning. The inSJders account reminded that if wind makes the large Rukatunturi hill unusable, organizers could switch to the nearby “Small Ruka” K64/HS70 hill. “Its profile is outdated by modern standards, but it’s still in use,” they wrote earlier in the week. “No one listened all weekend, so we’ll bring this up again next year,” they added after Sunday’s cancellation.

One clear beneficiary was Austria’s Stefan Kraft. He skipped Ruka to stay in Austria with his wife ahead of childbirth; with Sunday wiped out, his rivals had no chance to take advantage in the standings.

Commentators reacted with gallows humor. Eurosport Polska’s Michał Korościel joked that “somewhere near Salzburg” Kraft smiled at the news. Patryk Pancewicz called Ruka a paradox: “at once one of the worst and best venues” on the World Cup circuit. Eurosport posted a GIF alluding to Ruka’s annual wind problems.

The weekend ends with eyes turning to the next stop in Wisła, where Polish fans hope for better weather, fuller stands, and a proper World Cup show.