Sunday at Lahti Ski Games was kicked off by cross-country skiing and nordic combined HS130. The ski jumping section of the nordic combined was jumped at noon on Sunday in challenging wind conditions, and the jumpers were required to perform hard technically, especially during the landing. Johannes Lamparter narrowly won the race. Stefan Rettenegger and Estonian Kristjan Ilves joined next to him on the podium. Finnish local athlete Leevi Mutru competed in the last international race of his career and there were touching moments when Team Finland and the audience said goodbye to him.
The cross-country sprints were contested on Sunday at the ski stadium. The race distance was the Karpalo sprint 1.5 km, the ascent of which is one of the best-known sections of the ski tracks in Lahti and where competitors tend to strive for breakaways. The men’s winner was Johannes Hösflot Kläbo, who won all the Lahti Ski Games races. Hat trick for him! Lucas Chanavat from France came second and Valerio Grond from Switzerland third. In the women’s competition, Kristine Stavås Skistad was superior ahead of Coletta Rydzek of Germany and Maja Dahlqvist of Sweden.
The weekend of the Lahti Ski Games ended with an individual competition for male ski jumpers. Salpausselkä was bathed in sunshine at the start of the race, but as the race progressed, the conditions became much more difficult. Despite the challenges, the second round was also jumped as planned. In the second round, jumpers from as many as 13 different countries competed. In the end, Austrian Jan Hoer jumped to victory and Slovenia’s Peter Prevc came in second place by a narrow margin. Third place went to Polish Aleksander Zniszczol.
We have had a fantastic three days with 47 500 spectators and excellent race arrangements.
“The feedback we have received so far from customers, ticket buyers, VIP customers, partners, athletes and the FIS have been nothing but positive,” says Tomi-Pekka Kolu, CEO of the Lahti Ski Games. The competition organization is waiting for confirmation in June 2024 that the Nordic World Ski Championships will be held in Lahti for the eighth time in 2029.
A big thank you to volunteers, employees, City of Lahti, partners and every guest of the event. The event was done wholeheartedly day and night. A big thank you to the athletes. Our vision of trailing with great emotions came true several times during the weekend.