This weekend, Lahti, Finland, will be the site of the penultimate stage of the Nordic Combined World Cup series, featuring an important large hill Gundersen competition set for Friday. The ski jump round is scheduled to begin at 14:00 followed by a 10 km cross-country skiing event at 17:35. Postimees is set to provide live updates through a dedicated blog throughout the competition.

Kristjan Ilves, an Estonian ski jumper, has been facing challenges lately, with his performance at the Lahti jumping hill not meeting expectations. In the preliminary round earlier in the week, Ilves finished in 16th place, which is considerably lower than hoped. His struggles have been evident since the recent competition in Kulm, where he finished in 14th and 15th places in the preliminary and main rounds, respectively. This fall in rankings has raised concerns about his confidence leading into this key event.

Despite showing promise at the Milano Cortina Olympics, where he appeared to regain his jumping confidence, Ilves has recently faltered, and any failures in this upcoming event could set him back significantly. If he fails to perform well today, he would start the 10 km skiing portion over 1 minute and 45 seconds behind the leader, Thomas Rettenegger, marking a substantial gap. This situation not only affects his chances of success in Lahti but may also have implications for his overall standing in the World Cup series as the season progresses.