Germany edges Slovenia in thrilling Team Sprint
Aug 31, 2025·Nordic Combined)
The women’s team competition at the FIS Nordic Combined Summer Grand Prix in Chaux-Neuve offered a dramatic fight to the line, with Germany I narrowly defeating Slovenia after a nail-biting race.
The morning Ski Jumping round on the La Côté Feuillée HS118 hill was held in bright sunshine. Germany I, represented by Jenny Nowak (104 m) and Nathalie Armbruster (108 m), collected a total of 197.7 points to take the lead. This gave them the advantage of starting first in the 2x4.5 km roller ski relay.
Slovenia followed closely in second place thanks to strong jumps from Teja Pavec (105 m) and Ema Volavšek (103 m), scoring 192.2 points and starting just 7 seconds behind the leaders. Finland was third after Anna Kerko (89.5 m) and Minja Korhonen (107 m) combined for 172.9 points, 33 seconds adrift. The jumping round was overshadowed by a crash from Germany’s Maria Gerboth, who jumped 108 m – the joint longest distance of the day together with Armbruster – but fell on landing.
The race quickly developed into a head-to-head duel. Nowak and Pavec stayed close on the opening lap before handing over to their teammates. Armbruster and Volavšek skied side by side, and after 3 km they reached the exchange zone simultaneously, keeping the fight wide open. Behind them, Korhonen passed to Kerko in third, with France I, led by Romane Baud, already 40 seconds further back.
At the halfway mark, after 4.5 km, Nowak and Pavec again exchanged together, handing over to Armbruster and Volavšek in perfect sync. Finland, however, was already 1:07 minutes behind the leaders, while France I’s Brocard took over in fourth, 1:50 minutes back.
As the laps continued, neither team could shake the other. After 7.5 km, Nowak managed to dig deep and carve out a slender 10-second gap over Pavec, giving Armbruster a small cushion for the final lap. Volavšek fought hard to close it, attacking all the way to the finish.
In the end, Armbruster held on, bringing Germany I across the line first. Slovenia secured second place just 3.2 seconds behind, while Finland completed the podium with Korhonen finishing 1:42.8 minutes back. France I had no chance to close the gap and finished out of contention.
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