Jacqueline Seifriedsberger pulled off a huge victory in Willingen to claim only her second World Cup title at 33 years old. The Austrian last tasted gold exactly 11 years ago and clinched top spot with jumps of 125 and 127 metres. Seifriedsberger’s 161.4-point total was good enough to edge out Sara Takanashi in second, with Germany’s Katharina Schmid completing the podium.
Austria’s Jacqueline Seifriedsberger took her second FIS Ski Jumping World Cup gold in Willingen exactly 11 years after winning her first.
The 33-year-old’s victory came thanks to consistent jumping, where distances of 125 and 127 metres on the large hill helped her accrue 161.4 total points, 4.1 more than her nearest challenger, Sara Takanashi.
Germany’s Katharina Schmid completed the podium.
Seifriedsberger’s result sees her move into seventh in the overall World Cup standings, where teenage sensation Nike Prevc holds a commanding lead of 158 points.
Prevc finished 15th on Saturday afternoon, with rivals Yuki Ito and Eva Pinkelnig placing eighth and 13th respectively.
In the men’s event, Norway’s Johann Andre Forfang set the hill record with a 155.5-metre jump in the second round.
Coming into the competition ranked 17th overall, the 28-year-old won gold for the first time in five years, while his countryman Kristoffer Eriksen Sundal earned a first career podium with a third-placed finish.
Japan’s Ryoyu Kobayashi placed second in the competition, while World Cup leader Stefan Kraft failed to qualify for the second round.
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