A Historic First-Ever Women’s Nordic Combined Event

United States women's ski jumping. Photo: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer

OBERSTDORF, Germany — The US Woman’s Nordic team made history with this past weekend’s debut of the women’s nordic combined at the International Ski Federation’s FIS Nordic Ski Championships in Germany. The hope is for the International Olympic Committee to include the event in the 2026 Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina.

With the official introduction of women’s ski jumping into the Olympics in 2014, nordic combined remains the only Winter Olympic event where women cannot compete. Nordic combined pairs ski jumping with cross country skiing.

This year the USA Nordic Team was elevated to the World Cup stage by Tara Geraghty-Moats taking the initial championship trophy, the crystal globe. “Yes, medals will be awarded at the end of the day, but for me, the legacy of coming together to make the sport open to women is something that is more important than who gets the medals,” said Geraghty-Moats.

“I definitely didn’t do it single handedly, I’m just really honored to be here. I hope that the legacy I leave in the sport will help the sport continue to grow. It’s amazing what a lot of people can do if we work together to move sport and gender equality forward.”

USA Nordic Ski team is based in Park City, Utah and was recently sponsored by Park City’s Backcountry.com. Backcountry’s founder, Jim Holland, competed in two Olympic Games as a ski jumper.

 

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