Cleverly Combined

The enthusiasm for his sport apparently also pushed the Styrian Harald Bosio in 1933 to win the first-ever Nordic World Championship medal for Austria, a bronze medal in nordic combined. He achieved this at the first Nordic Ski World Championships held in Austria, specifically at the Bergisel in Innsbruck and on the tracks of Seefeld. It would be a stretch to say that this laid the foundation for an impressive development of the combination in Austria. Major international successes didn't occur again until the late 1980s with double overall World Cup winner Klaus Sulzenbacher and Olympic champions and World champions Felix Gottwald, Mario Stecher, Bernhard Gruber, and others in the 2000s. Nevertheless, this first medal seems very fitting to all those decisive steps that have been taken in Austria for Nordic combined in the last 40 years.

For example, on December 17, 1983, the first-ever World Cup for men in nordic combined took place again in Seefeld. The Gundersen method also celebrated its premiere in this first World Cup competition. Additionally, the women made their World Cup debut 37 years later in Austria, on December 18, 2020 in Ramsau am Dachstein. Seefeld and Ramsau are annual hosts for the World Cup and are also responsible for three Nordic Ski World Championships (Seefeld 1985 and 2019, Ramsau 1999).

In 1985, a significant change was coming. “The Siitonen step, the precursor to today’s known skating technique, was first used in international competitions,” recalls Günter Csar, himself a medalist at the Olympics and World Championships in combinations, trainer, and official. “This happened in a gray area back then, as there was no regulation in place yet.” After athletes using the new technique were faster in the individual races, almost all switched from the previously used classic technique in the team competition. “As a result, the free technique was officially integrated into the regulations for the combination in the following World Cup year.”

This was not the only major innovation that had its origin in Austria. The provisional competition jump (PCR) was also first practiced in Seefeld. In January 2008, very difficult conditions were forecast for the second competition day. “We were sitting with race director Ulrich Wehling,” recalls the then organizing committee head Werner Frießer. “A föhn storm was predicted for Sunday, while Saturday had perfect conditions.” Suddenly, TV stations and teams were informed that another jump would take place on Saturday to have a jump in reserve (in English, pocket) for Sunday’s race if necessary. Indeed, on Sunday, it was impossible to jump, so the provisional competition jump from Saturday, which was still referred to as “pocket jump” at that time, was counted. “It was included in the regulations for the next season.” And it has already saved many competitions from being canceled due to wind.

The most significant innovation, which also began in Seefeld, is probably the Nordic Combined Triple. For eleven years, it has become what the Four Hills Tournament is for the ski jumpers among the Nordic combiners. Its history began in 2013 when a group led by Werner Frießer, then the head of the organizing committee, and Ernst Vettori, then the Nordic sports director of the Austrian Ski Association (ÖSV), pondered how the World Cup in Seefeld could become a true season highlight for the Nordic Combination. "Our first thought was, similar to the tournament, to have three competitions at three different locations," recalls Frießer. However, various obstacles made this unfeasible. As an alternative, the new triple format was developed at only one location, which already celebrated its premiere in 2014. Since then, the unique World Cup event has taken place every year, nine times in Seefeld and once, in the World Championship year 2019, in Chaux-Neuve (France). The eleventh edition in Seefeld begins these days, on February 1, 2024.

Triple refers to the three days during which one competition in the Nordic Combination takes place each day and not to three different sports. Originally, it included all formats of the Nordic Combination – one jump from the HS-109 meter hill followed by a 5-kilometer sprint on day one, the classical 10-kilometer Gundersen race on day two, and the traditional 15-kilometer Gundersen variant on day three. "Over the years we have adjusted,” explains Frießer. So today, the cross-country races comprise 7.5 kilometers on day one, 10 kilometers on day two, and 12.5 kilometers on day three. The unique aspect of the triple remains: The winner is only determined after the third cross-country race on Sunday afternoon. This occurs because the results from the previous day influence the current starting order, leading to the overall winner crossing the finish line first at the end of the third cross-country race.

For athletes and spectators, this is precisely the appeal of the triple. "The format is very interesting, and excitement is definitely guaranteed. It's a really great, but also demanding weekend for us athletes,” explains double world champion and triple winner Johannes Lamparter. He followed the first triples as a young athlete in front of the television, and now, to win here in 2023 is "crazy.” "This victory is the dream of everyone. It is, besides the world championship title and Olympic victory, the big goal of every combiner."

Austria and in particular Seefeld are closely linked to the history and the development of nordic combined. The Austrian Ski Federation would like to help shape the future of this special sport. Ernst Vettori would like to see the Nordic Combined Triple as the USP of nordic combined. "Both for men and women." The Austrian Ski Federation and the Seefeld Ski Club have set a strong signal by adding two women's World Cups to the Triple in January 2023. Ski Club Chairwoman Jacqueline Stark: "Especially in light of the IOC's decision not to include women in the Olympic program in 2026, this was very important to us." The goal is to continue the development that began in 2014 with the first women's competitions in Oberstdorf (Germany) and continued with the World Cup debut in 2020 in Ramsau, up to the big goal of the 2030 Olympics. Important steps in this direction were also the first individual competition at the World Championships in 2021 in Oberstdorf and the first mixed team event in those held in Planica (Slovenia) on February 26, 2023.

Since the first Olympic Games in 1924 in Chamonix (France), nordic combined has been regarded as the king discipline of nordic skiing. 100 years later, however, its future is uncertain. Critical voices even see the men's competitions in the Olympic program at risk as of 2030. Nobody wants to allow such a historical cut. Therefore, in 2023, the Nordic Combined Triple (January 30 to February 1, 2026) has become an even larger and more exciting event with the addition of the women's events. Since 2025, women are also competing for a Triple winner. The premiere was won on February 2, 2025, by Nathalie Armbruster from Germany.