Nordic combined athletes around the world are mourning the sport's disappearance from the Olympic stage after the International Olympic Committee announced Tuesday it was cutting the discipline from the 2030 Games in favor of freeride skiing and snowboarding.
The sport, which features ski jumping and cross-country skiing, has been a part of every Winter Olympics since the Games began in 1924. But in a rare move, the IOC cut the discipline, citing struggling viewership, audience and podium diversity and depth.
"Today the biggest defeat didn't happen on the field," wrote French Nordic combined athlete Romane Baud on Instagram. "It happened in the IOC meeting room. Congratulations iocofficial you broke thousand hearts and dreams."
The decision is particularly heartbreaking for women's Nordic combined athletes such as Baud, who never got to compete at the Olympic level in the first place. Nordic combined has been men-only at the Olympics, and it was the only sport at the 2026 Games without a women's competition.
Though women's Nordic combined didn't host its first World Cup season until 2020-21, advocacy had grown since then to add a women's category to the Olympic program. In 2022, the IOC denied the request for the 2026 Games, instead telling the entire sport it needed to grow its profile to keep its spot in the Olympics.
The sport, which features ski jumping and cross-country skiing, has been a part of every Winter Olympics since the Games began in 1924. But in a rare move, the IOC cut the discipline, citing struggling viewership, audience and podium diversity and depth.
"Today the biggest defeat didn't happen on the field," wrote French Nordic combined athlete Romane Baud on Instagram. "It happened in the IOC meeting room. Congratulations iocofficial you broke thousand hearts and dreams."
The decision is particularly heartbreaking for women's Nordic combined athletes such as Baud, who never got to compete at the Olympic level in the first place. Nordic combined has been men-only at the Olympics, and it was the only sport at the 2026 Games without a women's competition.
Though women's Nordic combined didn't host its first World Cup season until 2020-21, advocacy had grown since then to add a women's category to the Olympic program. In 2022, the IOC denied the request for the 2026 Games, instead telling the entire sport it needed to grow its profile to keep its spot in the Olympics.
4 months ago
