Nordic combined

The Nordic combined is a winter sport in which athletes compete in cross-country skiing and ski jumping. Nordic combined at the Winter Olympics and the FIS Nordic Combined World Cup are ongoing. There is no women's competition sanctioned by the International Ski Federation.

History

The first major competition was held in 1892 in Oslo at the first Holmenkollen ski jump. King Olav V of Norway was an able jumper and competed in the Holmenkollen Ski Festival in the 1920s. It was in the 1924 Winter Olympics, and has been on the programme ever since. Until the 1950s, the cross-country race was held first, followed by the ski jumping. This was reversed as the difference in the cross-country race tended to be too big to overcome in ski jumping. The sport has been dominated by the Norwegians, supported by the Finns. It was not until 1960 that the Nordic grip on this discipline was broken when West German Georg Thoma won the gold medal at the 1960 Winter Olympics.

Competition

Formats and variations currently used in the World Cup are: