Olympic champion Vinzenz Geiger has fears for his sport in view of the imminent end of the Olympics for Nordic combined.

"I'm very worried when I see how the IOC decided - especially how they justified the decision," said Geiger before the start of the World Cup season this Friday in Ruka, Finland (11.15 a.m. / Eurosport).

In June, the International Olympic Committee decided against including a women's competition at the 2026 Winter Games in Milan and Cortina. The IOC also fundamentally questioned the Olympic future of the combination. In order to be there in 2030, the field of participants must become more diverse and viewer interest must increase.

"Women shouldn't be there in 2026, 2030 is still uncertain. That's a long time. It's not easy to find the motivation," said Geiger. "I hope that the World Cups can help that the girls stay with us," added the 25-year-old. "I think we've done a good job as a sport, we've developed well. I don't think there's a need to change that much. You should support the small nations, but you shouldn't change anything about the format." The combination is dominated by Norway, Germany, Austria and Japan. Other nations hardly play a role.

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