Alexa Brabec raced to a career best finish on Sunday, Jan. 19, at the FIS Nordic Combined World Cup in Schonach, Germany.

Brabec had a power jump of 92 meters, landing her in 12th place going into the 5k ski race. She was then able to ski up in a tight race where third to eighth place went back and forth to the finish line. Alexa finished seventh overall, narrowly missing the podium by less than eight seconds. 

On Saturday, Jan. 18, Brabec finished with a new personal best finish in 10th in the individual Gundersen HS100/5k event. Annika Malacinski also cracked the top 20 with an 18th place finish. In the men’s event (HS100/10k), Niklas Malacinski led the U.S. team to a solid 21st place finish, followed by Ben Loomis in 24th, Stephen Schumann in 47th and Erik Lynch in 50th.

In Sunday's individual compact HS100/5k event, Annika Malacinski secured another top 20 result, finishing in 20th place. On the men’s side, Niklas Malacinski delivered the top U.S. result with a 17th place finish, followed by Stephen Schumann in 28th, Erik Lynch in 42nd and Ben Loomis in 49th.

With Brabec’s breakthrough performances and consistent efforts from the entire team, the weekend shows the progress and potential of U.S. athletes on the World Cup circuit. Looking toward the FIS World Ski Championships at the end of February, the U.S. Nordic Combined team is on track for more top finishes and career-best races.  

RESULTS

The men’s U.S. Nordic Combined Team kicked off the 2024-25 World Cup season in Ruka, Finland, this weekend with exciting performances, including a top-five jump, two athletes in the top 20 overall, a new PR and all four men scoring World Cup points.

The weekend consisted of three events, each with a different format and some fast, exhilarating ski races. Thursday, Nov. 28, was a double PCR, or Provisional Competition Round, part of every event as a back-up in case jumping is canceled on the day of competition. Niklas Malacinski got the world’s attention with a jump of 126.5 meters, landing him in fifth place overall.

Friday’s race was the Individual Compact Large Hill HS142, a 7.5k ski race with start times compacted into a tighter window. This makes for a more exciting ski race that typically benefits fast skiers, of which the U.S. men are ranked. All four U.S. men landed in the top 40, with Erik Lynch scoring his first World Cup points: Malacinski 21, Loomis 25, Schumann 33, Lynch 40.

Malacinski made headlines again in Saturday’s race when he held tight with the second lead pack to finish in 13th place.  This was another Gundersen Large Hill HS142 with a 10k ski race this time. Malacinski jumped 126 meters, which landed him in 12th place after ski jumping, and he followed that up with an incredible ski, sticking with the best athletes in the world to finish 13th place overall and a new personal best. Following closely behind was Ben Loomis in 17th, giving the U.S. men an impressive start to the season.

Next, the U.S. Nordic Combined team will head to Lillehammer, Norway, where the women will join the men for another weekend of World Cup competition.

Link to Results 

The 2024-25 ski jumping and nordic combined World Cup season is almost upon us, with the first event slated for Nov. 22, 2024, in Lillehammer, Norway. This season is one to be excited about, as the ski jumping women will get to compete in a World Cup on home snow for the first time. 

Use the table below to stay updated on events and how to watch information for both domestic and international races.

• All international events will be LIVE on skiandsnowboard.live and on-demand on skiandsnowboard.live (immediately).
• All Austrian events will be LIVE & on-demand on Peacock.

Full ski jumping and nordic combined World Cup schedule:

*dates, times, and how to watch subject to change

Updated 10/15/2024 1:57 pm ET

Click here for more information regarding how to watch World Cup events.