Strong winds force Ruka World Cup cancellation

The second men’s World Cup event of the ‘Ruka Nordic’ weekend had to be cancelled after high wind speeds, occasionally in excess of 18m/s, made conditions unsafe for athletes to compete.

The qualification round, which was scheduled to take place on Sunday morning, was abandoned due to the challenging weather conditions, meaning all 64 athletes had been set to start the opening round.

Among those was World Cup leader and winner of the first contest Anze Lanisek (SLO) whose victory had come after the cancellation of the second round on Saturday.

Then fluctuating winds, combined with rain and snowfall had forced the decision and while there was more consistency on Sunday, the wind speeds created greater safety concerns.

“I was hoping for a present from Santa Claus but we had to accept it’s too early,” said FIS Ski Jumping World Cup Race Director Sandro Pertile.

“The wind condition was completely against us since the morning, with gusts of up to 18m/s and although it has dropped in the afternoon, we still have gust around 10m/s and our usual limit is four, so it’s too much for the safety of the athletes.”

With no opportunity to move postpone the World Cup until Monday FIS will now consult with other host venue organisers, together with the Finish Ski Association to find a solution.

“We will start immediately to try and replace the competition,” continued Pertile. “For sure it will not be in Ruka or (at venues in) the coming two to three weeks as the process is quite long.

“Finland hosts another World Cup in Lati in March and this could be the biggest chance to reschedule the event, but the process needs some work and I hope that we can inform everyone soon.

Pertile concluded; “We are confident we can find a competition and replace the event in the winter season.”

The men’s field will reunite with the women for the next stage of the 2025/26 FIS Ski Jumping World Cup season, with Wisla (POL) due to host four contests from 4-7 December.