What to know about Nordic combined and its Olympic future

"Nordic combined, the only Olympic sport that bars women from competition, dates to the original Winter Games but may not survive beyond the Milan Cortina competition. The sport that fuses ski jumping with cross-country skiing is in jeopardy because it doesn't have a big following and a small number of countries dominate the podium. If the sport is scrapped, it would be a blow not just to the male athletes, but to the many women who compete internationally who have pushed for inclusion."

"How it works Combine the daredevil thrill of ski jumping with a physically exhausting cross-country ski race and you get a two-day event unlike any other that was conceived in Norway in the late 1800s to determine the best all-around skier. The athlete who leads after the ski jumping contest starts the cross-country race in the front of the pack. His head start is calculated by converting ski jumping points into seconds."

"The team event includes four teammates who jump and then join forces in a cross-country ski relay race. Following the retirements of Norwegian stars Jarl Magnus Riiber, the sport's most dominant competitor, and Jrgen Graabak, the most successful Olympic Nordic combined skier of all time, the field is wide open. Early season standouts in the 2025-2026 World Cup are Austria's Johannes Lamparter and Germany's Julian Schmid."

Nordic combined combines ski jumping and cross-country skiing and dates to the original Winter Games. The discipline faces possible removal from future Olympic programs because of limited global following and podium concentration among a few countries. Women remain barred from Olympic Nordic combined despite international competition and advocacy for inclusion. The International Olympic Committee deferred a decision on inclusion for the 2030 French Alps Games until spring. The event is a two-day format with ski jumping followed by a time-staggered 10-kilometer cross-country race. Team events pair four jumpers who compete in a relay. Venues include Predazzo and Tesero in Val di Fiemme.

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