Ville Larinto of Finland in action during his first jump at the FIS World Cup Ski Jumping on January 24, 2009 at the Whistler Olympic Park in Whistler, British Columbia. (Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images) Jack of all trades. Slow and steady wins the race. These are the maxims of nordic combined.
The competition requires a mastery of ski jumping and cross-country skiing and is contested over two days. Ski jumping and cross-country skiing require speed and strength on their own, but the two together require endurance and pacing.
This is a sport in which big leads are always vulnerable and come-from-behind victories not only are possible but in some cases likely in both Olympic disciplines: the individual and team events.
Event breakdown
In the individual events, athletes first compete in the ski jumping portion on the large (K120) hill and normal (k90) hill. They perform two jumps, which are assessed by the same form and distance criteria applied to the stand-alone ski jumping event. The results from this event are used to determine the start order for the following cross-country race with the leader starting first.
The remaining athletes are placed according to the Gundersen Method, which assigns staggered start times based on ski jumping points. From here, the skiers chase the leader in a 10-kilometre cross-country race, using either classical or freestyle techniques.
The first skier to cross the finish line is the winner.
Four athletes work together in the team event. Each jumper is allowed two jumps off the large hill, and the total score is drawn from these eight marks. As in the individual events, staggered starts for the cross-country event are calculated using the Gundersen Method. Skiers compete in a 4x5km freestyle relay in pursuit of the lead team.
Know your opponents
In nordic combined, each athlete must be acutely aware of their own and their opponents' strengths and weaknesses. Hope is not lost, nor victory assured, after the ski-jumping leg - rare is the nordic combined athlete who is the best in the field in both ski jumping and cross-country skiing.
"It's a tactical situation where I'm not jumping that well, but I've got to stay close because I know I can ski faster than five guys ahead of me," says former ski jumper Ron Richards. "There's a lot of strategy. It's not easy."
Fast-twitch and slow-twitch muscles
In order to perform well in both disciplines, the nordic combined athlete splits his training time between the two.
"They're totally different muscles that you train for," Richards says. "It is a unique sport in that you've got the fast-twitch sport in ski jumping and then you've got this endurance sport in cross country skiing."
Ski jumpers are long, lean and light. A jump is over in a matter of seconds, so the jumper must develop quick and sensitive reflexes. To develop this form, ski jumpers work on overall conditioning with an emphasis on speed training and power. Specifically, ski jumpers follow a routine of plyometrics and weight training, honing their fast-twitch muscle fibre.
Cross-country skiers, on the other hand, are consummate slow-twitch athletes. They are muscular and have incredible endurance. Running, cycling, and roller skiing all help condition the athlete off the snow.
"It's gruelling for those athletes because they split their training, half ski jumping and half cross country skiing, where they'll jump in the morning and do their cross-country ski training in the afternoon," Richards says.
To appreciate this blend of muscle types, consider the track and field athlete. The sprinters with the huge upper bodies are primarily fast-twitch athletes, while the apparently gaunt marathon runners are nearly all slow-twitch muscles.
The nordic combined heartland
Close proximity to training resources is crucial, and the heartland of the sport remains largely central Europe and Scandinavia, despite inroads being made by American and Japanese athletes. Being among world-class athletes with strong training support and knowledge can improve one's game, especially given the importance of being familiar with the opposition in nordic combined.
