Nordic combined is a challenging mixture of physical and mental strength, technical control, and endurance. In the jumping portion competitors try to soar through the air for as long as possible, whereas during the cross-country race they try to cross the finish line in the shortest possible time. These seemingly conflicting objectives lend generously to the appeal of the Nordic combined event.
There is no doubt that becoming involved in Nordic combined is more difficult than most sports. Although cross-country skiing can be practiced during the winter months across the country, the Canadian certified ski jumping facilities exist in Calgary, Alberta.
Therefore, please visit http://www.nordiccombinedcanada.com for more information about this amazing sport.
The Nordic combined is contested in three separate events, the individual, the sprint and the team event.
In the individual and team events, athletes jump on the “normal” 90-metre hill, whereas in the sprint event, athletes jump on the larger 120-metre hill.
In the individual event, each athlete attempts two jumps on the normal hill. Jumps are judged for both length and style. Scores are then converted into minutes and seconds and used to determine the starting order for the 15km cross-country ski race.
The athlete with the best ski jumping score starts first and others are staggered at various time intervals corresponding to their ski jumping results.
Like the individual event, in the sprint event the winner is determined by the first athlete to finish the cross-country ski race. Contrastingly, in this event, skiers have only one jump attempt and the race is only 7.5 km long.
In the team event, each of the four-team members has two jump attempts on the normal hill and the score from all eight jumps is combined.
Start positions are determined by the total jumping score of each team. Each skier races a 5 km portion of the course and the next skier cannot start the race until he/she is tagged by his or her teammate when they finish completing their 5 km leg.
As the name implies, Nordic Combined is a sport that combines ski jumping and cross-country skiing, both of which originated in Scandinavia more than 500 years ago!
More recently, the individual Nordic Combined events have been included at every Winter Olympics since the first Winter Games in 1924.
Results for Nordic Combined |
Typical Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Vertical Jump | (Explosive Power) | High |
| Sit and Reach | (Flexibility) | High |
| 800m Run | (Aerobic Fitness) | Low |
| Partial Curl-Ups | (Muscular Endurance) | Medium |
| 30m Sprint | (Speed) | High |
| Stork Stand | (Balance) | Low |
| T-Drill | (Agility) | Medium |
| Basketball Throw | (Strength) | Medium |
