Johannes Lamparter celebrates with his Austrian teammates. © APA/afp / JONATHAN NACKSTRAND

World Cup farce: Austria's bronze medal causes chaos

Strange scenes took place at the Nordic World Ski Championships in Trondheim on Friday. The focus was on Austria's bronze medal in the Nordic combined.

28. February 2025

From: apa/det

After a long wait, Austria's mixed Nordic combined team won the first red-white-red medal at the World Championships in Trondheim with bronze. The quartet of Stefan Rettenegger, Claudia Purker, Lisa Hirner and Johannes Lamparter were able to celebrate third place on Friday, one hour (!) late. A tough maneuver by Lamparter in the sprint to the finish against Ryota Yamamoto had led to a protest from Japan for obstruction.

The ÖSV team was in fourth place after the jumping, and in the cross-country skiing, Lamparter won the sprint to the finish by 0,2 seconds ahead of Yamamoto. The Japanese protested because of a late change of direction by Lamparter, and long discussions followed. ÖSV sports director Mario Stecher, head coach Christoph Bieler, and Lamparter and Yamamoto had to appear before the jury and justify the action.

Trouble at the ÖSV

“In the end, it was clear to the jury that it was not a major hindrance,” said FIS race director Lasse Ottesen, explaining the decision in ORF. It wasn't easy, "when you get a protest, you have to do it right," added the Norwegian. "Unfortunately, it took a long time, but in the end I think we made the right decision." ÖSV managing director Christian Scherer understood the Japanese protest and criticized the officials' actions: "Of course it took too long," said Scherer, who was also annoyed about "people outside the jury" in the room.

The controversial scene took place during the sprint to the finish between Johannes Lamparter (left) and Ryota Yamamoto. © APA / GEORG HOCHMUTH

The result was not made official until more than an hour after the end of the race, which is why the award ceremony at Granåsen Skisenter took place in front of empty stands. The obligatory press conference after the medal decision was also cancelled, and the medal ceremony in Trondheim city centre was postponed until Saturday evening. The ÖSV quartet was nevertheless delighted, even if temporary doubts had dampened their euphoria about their success on the trail. "It was a strange feeling right at the finish line," said Bieler, who explained the chaotic scenes while standing in the rain.

Lamparter had a plan

Lamparter had planned his late change of direction in the sprint to the finish shortly beforehand. "I wanted the decision beforehand, but then there was a plan B. It's a Formula 1 rule: whoever is in front can choose the lane. I know that he (Yamamoto, note) is one of the fastest on the finish straight. That's why I thought of a different plan and it worked," explained the Tyrolean after winning his seventh World Championship medal. After the jump, nobody would have expected that, "that's why I'm very happy."