Lamparter wins Gundersen duel with Rehrl to extend lead

Johannes Lamparter (AUT) stretched his overall lead in the men’s Viessmann FIS Nordic Combined World Cup standings to 43 points with a third win from the first four events of the season as he took victory in Sunday's Large Hill Gundersen in Trondheim.

The 2022-23 champion, who could only manage sixth place in Saturday’s Mass Start, proved the stronger in a head-to-head duel with Austrian team-mate Franz-Josef Rehrl, who followed up his third place on Saturday with an excellent second place.

The relentless Julian Schmid (GER) overhauled Wendelin Thannheimer (GER) and Ilkka Herola (FIN) in a sprint finish to claim the final podium place, his third of the winter after two seconds in Ruka last weekend.

Lamparter laid the platform for his 20^th individual World Cup win with a 133.0m jump for 140.4 points on the HS138 Large Hill to finish second behind Rehrl, whose 137.5m effort, scoring 143.4 points, gave him a 12-second lead heading into the cross-country.

But Lamparter caught his compatriot by the end of the first 2.5km lap and they worked hard together to maintain their advantage over the rest before the 24-year-old powered away from Rehrl on the final uphill climb to win in 23:30.6, 11.6 seconds clear.

“Saturday was not so good but it was a perfect Sunday with a solid jump and a really good race,” Lamparter said. “It was a really fast start and then a really good pace for the second and third laps. We were always around 20 seconds ahead.”

Rehrl, after achieving a first World Cup podium since February 2023 with third place in Saturday’s Mass Start, put the seal on a memorable weekend for Austria with another strong performance.

“It was a great day,” said the 32-year-old. “I am so lucky I can perform like this here. I had a good chance on this hill – better than last weekend – and I am so glad I was in the front (in the jumping).”

Herola, starting 21 seconds back, made up ground early on and formed a chasing duo with Thannheimer, who enjoyed another strong day after his first World Cup podium in the Mass Start.

But neither could hold off the fast-finishing Schmid, who despite starting 1:05 back in ninth, worked with Stefan Rettenegger (AUT) to close the gap on the leaders to 30 seconds at the end of the third lap before pipping Thannheimer – who finished fourth – and Herola, who came home fifth, in the final sprint.

“I tried to go as fast as I could from the first lap and it worked out really well,” said Schmid, who remains Lamparter’s closest challenger in the overall standings.

Earlier on the Large Hill, favourable conditions brought a stunning exhibition of ski jumping, with 12 men flying beyond 130 meters.

After Jiawen Zhao (CHN) - 125.5m (115.5 points) - and defending champion Vinzenz Geiger (GER - 124.5m for 118.6 points), on his return from injury, set down early targets, Sora Yachi (JPN) posted a superb 135.5m jump, by far the longest at that stage, to take the lead with 128.7 points.

Simon Mach (GER) – 133.0m (123.4 points) – and Laurent Muhletahler (FRA) – 131.0m (125.3) – both came close, while Stefan Rettenegger’s 129.0m effort for 125.9 points, and a 134.0m jump from Marco Heinis (FRA) for 127.2 points, also threatened the lead.

But Yachi still led before the top 10 athletes took to the hill, with the start gate moving from 27 to 26 for the first five, and then down to 25 for the final five to go.

The lead changed hands on three more occasions. First Paul Walcher (AUT) took over with a 131.0m jump for 129.9 points before Thannheimer’s mammoth 139.5m effort – the longest jump of the day – set a new mark of 139.2 points.

But Rehrl (above), going next, immediately topped that with a wonderful 137.5m jump yielding 143.4 points from the judges.

Herola’s 131.5m effort (138.2 points) put him in a good position for the cross-country, but Thomas Rettenegger (AUT), the leading jumper so far this season, could only manage 12^th place (124.9 points) after an untidy landing despite soaring 133.0m.

Lamparter, going last, managed the same distance as his compatriot with a stylish jump and his 140.4 points for second place gave him only a 12-second gap in the tracks, which he duly made up before breaking clear of Rehrl in the closing stages.

Click here for full results from Sunday's Large Hill Gundersen.