Winter Olympics event abandoned as scores controversially wiped out
Team Germany missed out on an Olympic medal in the Men’s Ski Jumping Super Team event, after it was abandoned. (Image: Getty Images)
A controversial conclusion to the Ski Jumping Men’s Super Team Finals left Team Germany without a medal after the event was halted due to heavy snowfall. Winter Olympics officials abandoned the final midway through the last round and declared the second-round standings as definitive. The call is likely to prove hugely contentious.
Team Germany has previously endured disappointment at the Winter Olympics, following their defeat and ridicule at the hands of Team USA in ice hockey. Yet Philipp Raimund and Andreas Wellinger of Team Germany were livid after the event concluded, having narrowly missed out on a medal by the smallest of margins.
Heavy snow began descending at Predazzo Ski Jumping Stadium in Val de Fiemme. The weather conditions caused interruptions between competitors, with those delays lengthening as the snowfall intensified.
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Three athletes were poised to complete their final jump and secure glory for their respective countries. Instead, the competition was abandoned, with second-round results standing as the official outcome.
The decision to put safety first left Germany furious after their fourth-placed finish was confirmed. Austria’s Jan Hoerl and Stephan Embacher secured gold, whilst Poland claimed silver and Norway maintained their position to take bronze.
It marked Hoerl’s second gold medal following his Beijing triumph four years ago, and Embacher’s first success. Despite Austria claiming gold, Poland emerged as the most fortunate nation, as a disappointing jump in the final round saw them provisionally drop to fifth place.
Having finished second following the second round jumps, Poland managed to secure silver. Kacper Tomasiak, 19, is part of Team Poland and claimed his third medal at the Milan-Cortina Games following the contentious decision.
Poland was deemed the biggest winner after surviving a disappointing final round. (Image: Getty Images)
Germany’s disappointment intensified upon discovering the minuscule margin that denied them a medal.
Norway held a 0.3-point advantage over Germany to claim bronze, equivalent to half a metre. Germany fell just 20 inches short of securing its 16th medal in 2026, whilst Norway strengthened its position atop the leaderboard, claiming a 28th medal.
Whilst it proved a devastating blow for Germany, Raimund secured gold in the men’s normal hill ski jump earlier this month. He entered his debut Olympics ranked sixth globally, but triumphed with a best jump of 106.5 metres and 274.1 points.
“I’ve never won a World Cup, so now I’m Olympic champion and I will be known probably for the rest of my life because I have a gold medal and that is un-(expletive)-believable,” Raimund said.
Poland’s Tomasiak claimed silver, whilst Japan’s Ren Nikaido shared bronze with Switzerland’s Gregor Deschwanden.
This article first appeared on Mirror US.
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