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Norway takes tight finish in Nordic combined team event

Nordic Combined - Winter Olympics Day 11

competes in the Nordic Combined Men’s 10km Cross Country during day 11 of the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics at RusSki Gorki Nordic Combined Skiing Stadium on February 18, 2014 in Sochi, Russia.

Clive Mason

Joergen Graabak held off Germany’s Fabian Riessle at the finish to give Norway the win in the Nordic combined team large hill/4x5km relay, earning another gold to go along with the one he got in the individual large hill 10km event.

The Austrians had been bidding for a third consecutive Olympic title in this event.

Graabak, Riessle, and Austria’s Mario Stecher were nose-to-tail midway through the final lap, with Stecher taking multiple attempts to pass Graabak on the outside before falling back to third.

In the end, it came down to a sprint in the stadium between Graabak and Riessle (the bronze medalist in individual LH 10km), with the Norwegian winning by three-tenths of a second. Stecher got Austria the bronze, finishing 3.4 seconds behind.

The Norwegians had started 25 seconds off of the Germans after finishing third in the ski jumping portion.

The United States’ foursome of Bryan Fletcher, Todd Lodwick, Taylor Fletcher and Bill Demong came home sixth.

MORE: Great Britain earns women’s curling bronze, enjoying best Winter Games since 1924

NORDIC COMBINED - TEAM LARGE HILL 4X5KM RELAY
1. Norway, 47:13.5
2. Germany, +0.3 seconds
3. Austria, +3.4 seconds
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6. United States, +2:21.6

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