The best Austrian was Franz-Josef Rehrl in tenth place, who had dropped back to tenth place after jumping off the large hill. With Stefan Rettenegger in 16th place and Martin Fritz (19th), two other ÖSV athletes made it into the top 20. In his last race, the German combination star Eric Frenzel finished 40th, and the 34-year-old won the overall World Cup five times .
Austria’s third overall World Cup winner in Nordic combined, Lamparter, had already secured the big crystal globe with eleventh place the day before. On Sunday, the only 21-year-old Tyrolean only finished 14th, but that didn’t play a big role. “I have to be honest, I’ve tortured myself more than once in a race. I just enjoyed the race today. Crossing the finish line was pure relief,” Lamparter said happily in an ORF TV interview.
Big ball for Lamparter
Lamparter was happy after he was the third Austrian to receive the big crystal globe after Klaus Sulzenbacher (1987/88 and 1989/90) and Felix Gottwald (2000/01). “It’s really crazy, pure emotions, to have the ball now. All the hard training and a lot invested, and now getting it back, that’s wonderful,” said the overall winner and thanked the many people involved. “I’m really happy about the ball. She gets a very special place at home.”
Lamparter won with 1,367 points, 54 points clear of Oftebro and 150 over Germany’s Julian Schmid. Rehrl, who was not very happy with tenth place at the end of the season, ended up sixth overall. “It wasn’t our best weekend. I ran halfway today, but tenth isn’t that good. I’m still happy with the season,” said the man from Ramsau.
Head coach Eugen sums it up with satisfaction
ÖSV head coach Christoph Eugen summed it up as “very satisfied with the season”. “There were consistently good performances from many different athletes, of course Johannes deserves a special mention with his overall World Cup victory. Last year he was close and this year he made it,” said the official. Lamparter was very stable and constant. “The World Championships were also really successful for us with four medals, which shows good work.”
There will be no major event in the coming season, so he would like to catch up on the Nations Cup that he has now missed. Frenzel, who is the record man with his five overall World Cup victories, ended his career on Sunday. The long-term German official (head coach since 1996) and multiple ex-world champion Hermann Weinbuch also says goodbye to the combination.