Because his competitor throws himself over the finish line, Martin Nörl comes in second at the world championships. But the snowboarder also has to worry about silver for some time - the Austrian Olympic champion Alessandro Hämmerle protests after a daring maneuver.
Martin Nörl stood at the foot of the Lesser Caucasus with a cramp in his right thigh and trembled through the most dramatic minutes of his snowboarding career. The 29-year-old was immediately "clear" that he had lost gold in the cross-country competition in the last few meters, but would it still be enough to win silver? The Austrian Alessandro Hämmerle, Olympic champion in Beijing, had protested against his risky overtaking manoeuvre, the jury deliberated for what felt like an eternity - then it was finally clear: Nörl is second! Only fourth place remained for Hämmerle.
After the "little nail-biter", as Nörl from Lower Bavaria called the anxious wait, there was no sign of disappointment about the missed gold coup. Rather, he thought it was "awesome" that he can now call himself Vice World Champion. "I'm glad it went that way, my boards were unbelievably strong," said the relieved athlete. Italy's Omar Visintin secured bronze.
The scenery was reminiscent of the Olympic decision in ski cross in Beijing, where Daniela Maier had to fear for her medal for a long time. Her duel with the Swiss Fanny Smith had a sports court aftermath, after months of discussions, both received bronze.
The decision was only made after the finish photo. The new world champion, Jakob Dusek from Austria, threw himself over the finish line and snatched gold from the Landshut native in a neck-and-neck race. But it felt different for Nörl: Dusek pushed his board tip "quite clearly" in front of him - and so he didn't mourn Gold much.
Nörl achieved something downright historic: Last winter's overall World Cup winner and current leader won only the second medal for Snowboard Germany in this discipline in Bakuriani, Georgia, after Markus Ebner, who also won silver in 2001. Unlike his large crystal ball, which he keeps safe from his three- and four-year-old daughters in a suitcase, Nörl's plaque should have a place of honor at home. "It's a bit more stable," he said with a smile and checked his medal in his hand, "you can put it somewhere."
In the team competition on Thursday, Nörl can do better alongside Jana Fischer, who finished sixth. As long as the thigh holds. Nörl had had problems since the round of 16, after which there were three more runs over the 1.3 kilometer long, exhausting course. "It wasn't just pleasure snowboarding anymore", said Nörl with a laugh. Again and again doctors and physio had to work.
Fischer also showed a courageous performance and was rewarded with her best World Championship placement. Gold went to Olympic champion Eva Adamczykova from the Czech Republic, who won her second world title after 2019. The only 18-year-old World Championship debutant Leon Ulbricht drove well, missed the semifinals by just 0.11 seconds and finished ninth. Leon Beckhaus was eliminated in the round of 16. Paul Berg, sixth at the 2021 World Cup and two-time World Cup winner, failed in the so-called pre-finals in the morning.
