Katharina Althaus of Germany celebrates with her teammates after winning silver in the women's normal hill event of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics at the National Ski Jumping Center in Zhangjiakou, China, February 5, 2022. /CFP
The ski jumping mixed team event makes its Olympic debut on Monday evening at the National Ski Jumping Center in Zhangjiakou, north China. And it is Germany's gold to lose.
Since the event was included in the world championships in 2013, the German team has medaled in every single one of them. Even better: they have won gold the last four times, including on home soil a year ago.
And with Katharina Althaus, Karl Geiger, Constantin Schmid and Selina Freitag, they are fielding a strong team.
Althaus won her second Olympic silver medal in the women's normal hill on Saturday, after Pyeongchang in 2018. And Geiger, a three-time world championship medallist, has been leading World Cup standings this season, although he finished 15th in the men's normal hill on Sunday.
"We are a very strong team, we have good chances, so I hope for the best," Althaus told reporters during training on Friday.
It's a cohesive team, she added. "We have trained together a few times (with the men), and we are always talking about everything together."
Japan's Ryoyu Kobayashi (C) is congratulated by teammates after winning the men's ski jumping normal hill event at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics in Zhangjiakou, China, February 6, 2022. /CFP
But while Germany looks set for gold, don't discount habitually strong ski jumping nations like Japan, Austria, Slovenia and Norway.
Japan is the only other country to have won mixed team gold at world championships back in 2013 and will be extra motivated following Ryoyu Kobayashi's Olympic gold in Zhangjiakou on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Slovenia may have the most distinguished team of all. Ursa Bogataj and Nika Kriznar took gold and bronze in the women's competition on Saturday, while Peter Prevc, who finished just off the podium on Sunday, is a two-time overall World Cup winner and multiple world and Olympic medalist.
Team Slovenia also won the most recent World Cup mixed team event in Willingen, Germany just 10 days ago.
"I think the Slovenian team is really good, prepared and I think we are a strong team. Of course, we (are) just fighting for medals," Kriznar told CGTN.
Gold medalist Ursa Bogataj of Slovenia (C) celebrates with silver medalist Katharina Althaus of Germany (L) and bronze medalist Nika Kriznar of Slovenia (R) after the women's ski jumping normal hill event at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics in Zhangjiakou, China, February 5, 2022. /CFP
Austria will also be feeling confident after Manuel Fettner's silver on Sunday, even though it is missing its star jumper Sara Marita Kramer, who was unable to travel to the Olympics after testing positive for COVID-19.
"There is definitely a chance of a medal in mixed team, even if Sara's missing," team member and three-time individual world champion Stefan Kraft told CGTN. "The chances would have been greater (with her), of course, she's the best female ski jumper in the world at the moment ... but the chances are still there."
More medal chances
The ski jumping mixed team is one of seven new events included at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. And it comes after the women's normal hill was added in 2014 in Sochi.
Although ski jumping has been a feature of the Winter Olympics since the very beginning in 1924, for decades, it was only a men's sport.
Now, the chance to win more medals at the world's biggest sports event has both male and female ski jumpers excited.
Manuel Fettner of Austria cheers after his jump during the men's normal hill event of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics at the National Ski Jumping Center in Zhangjiakou, China, February 6, 2022. /CFP
"The more chances of a medal, the better! So it's a great idea," rejoiced Kraft.
"Definitely!" his teammate Fettner agreed. "I think it's very cool they've added this."
There is still no team event for the women, as there is for the men. But "it's getting better ... maybe we'll get it in the next Olympics. Big hill and team competitions – it will be very good," said Bogataj.
Women's ski jumping "is getting stronger and stronger," added Althaus.
"We are very happy that it's going this way, that we have more competitions, more competitions on big hills ... I think it's the right direction, and I hope for more," she said.
"I'm very excited about the mixed team competition. It's very great for our sport... It's great to have two chances to win a medal here."