With 13 of 21 World Cup events completed, the question is still open: is this Jarl Magnus Riiber’s year?
The 21-year-old Norwegian ran away with the first half of the schedule, winning six of the first eight competitions and building a big lead in the World Cup standings. But he hasn’t won since – either an event or a medal in the five races since.
He hasn’t been bad, finishing 4-4-7-6-5 in the last five and holding a commanding 858-669-648 lead over Mario Seidl (AUT) and Germany’s reigning World Champion, Johannes Rydzek.
The hottest athletes right now are Austria’s Franz-Josef Rehrl, who won two of the three events at Chaux-Neuve (FRA) last week and was third in the other, and Germany’s Fabian Riessle, who went 3-3-2 there for medals in all three races.
This week, Riiber is back on home ground in Trondheim (NOR), and he and teammate Jorgen Graabak have won a total of seven times this season. The competitions will be off a 140 m hill, followed by a 10.0 km cross-country race.
Riiber is no stranger to Trondheim, scoring a silver in the second race there, while Riessle won bronze and gold. Eric Frenzel (GER) was the other winner there last season.
Look for results here.
