Peter Prevc has won the third leg of the Four Hill tournament ahead of Severin Freund. The Slovenian is now in the pole position to take the overall title at the event.
For the second time in a row Peter Prevc was just too much for his rivals. Two days after coming up tops in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the 23-year-old won in Innsbruck to take a commanding lead in the overall Four Hills standings.
The contest came down to the second jumps. Germany’s Severin Freund recorded the best mark of the day up to that point with a mark of 128 meters. But Prevc was unimpressed, immediately going Freund four meters better.
It was Prevc’s eleventh World Cup win but only his second at the Four Hills. At the close of Sunday, the Slovenian led the table with 842.1 points, compared to 822.4 for the second-placed Freund. That puts Prevc on track to win his first overall title at ski jumping’s premier competition.
“It’s going to take a miracle – Peter was just better today,” a gracious Freund told reporters. “The gap is really big so I can’t go into the next event dreaming of winning.”
For his part, the Slovenian was taking nothing for granted.
“I’m really satisfied,” Prevc said. “But no one’s won anything until Bischofshofen. I have to stay focused.”
Norway’s Kenneth Gangnes was third both in Innsbruck and overall. The Four Hills tournament concludes in Bischofshofen, Austria on January 6.
