TNT Sports
Manninen eyes gold
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Published 11/02/2006 at 10:48 GMT
He may be the most successful Nordic combined athlete in the history of the World Cup, but Hannu Manninen is yet to get his hands on an individual Olympic gold medal. The 27-year-old who has won a record 42 World Cup events has a habit of losing his cool
Eurosport
Image credit: TNT Sports
Since his Olympic debut as a 15-year-old during the Lillehamer in 1994, his only Olympic medals have come during the team events, in which the Finns are known for their prowess.
Although he has already clinched the World Cup this season with six events still left to go with twice as many points as his closest rival, in his five world championships, he has never been on the podium.
Torino Trouble
On Saturday, Manninen will have a first chance to set his record straight during Saturday's 15 km individual Gunderson. The athletes will jump twice on the smaller hill then put on then change skis and complete the 15 km around the cross-country course.
Struggling in Wednesday's training and improving slightly on Friday with two top jumps, Manninen's Olympic doubts are still on his mind.
"I haven't jumped here before ... it's quite difficult," Manninen said, complaining about the thin air and blustery winds in Pragelato, 80 km away from Turin, at 1,528 metres above sea level.
"It blows you up after the take-off and then you suddenly and quickly go down," he said. "And it's even worse for me as I'm a big guy. I am heavy so I go down much faster than the smaller boys. They will have an advantage here."
Ackermann spat
However, his arch-rival Ronny Ackermann may not be in better shape. In three jumps on Friday, the German who won two gold medals in the 2005 World Championships, was ranked 21st, 28th, and 11th.
Ackermann shocked many in the largely uncontroversial world of Nordic skiing by thwacking Manninen with his ski pole after losing out to him in a World Cup sprint finish in December.
Although the German later apologised, he still maintains
Manninen blocked him as he tried to overtake in the skate to the finish line. Many will be watching to see if the inevitable pressure of the Olympics will reignite their spat.
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