Lundby’s career is the end of an impressive series of performances on the show jumping hill. And it’s the end of having to meet weight requirements that ultimately helped take away the motivation she felt was necessary to continue ski jumping at the very top level. What Maren had “Do you really want this, Maren?”, asked the undersigned tentatively rhetorically in a comment just over a year ago. The fear that the comeback project of our best ski jumper could come at too high a price was palpable, seen from the ignorant outside. Everyone, myself naturally included, got a cash answer now and then, but most of all through what Maren Lundby performed in what was to be her last season as a world-class jumper. Despite the obvious challenges of getting back to the technical ideal weight for jumping, which FYI must not be confused with the term “ideal weight” on a general basis, Lundby did things on the ground no one had thought possible after the problems she had had for a long time. And told about. The cost of the last of the last was obviously great. Fortunately, its value to the outside world is much greater. For the Norwegian jumper’s openness about health problems after many years of hard weight pressure and training has obviously been more important than it is possible to measure in style grades. Summary of Maren Lundby’s career. The painful openness Lundby took the step out of ski jumping and into the world of De Great Forbilder when she took the burden of telling the outside world about her weight problems, at the back of her participation in Skal vi danse on TV 2. Where she had received criticism for not being a serious performer. Without anyone knowing what kind of challenges she was really struggling with. The tears flowed when she announced in an interview with news in autumn 2021 that she would not try to defend the Olympic gold from Pyeongchang the following winter. This openness earned her accolades that perhaps had as much value as a new Olympic medal, in the form of equality awards, cultural awards and the Peer Gynt statuette. The sports gala. But most of all, Maren Lundby had become the one who had shown young women, not so young women and men of all ages a vulnerability that very few other sports stars had had the courage to expose in public. The equality champion had also become a role model in other areas of life. Someone who talked about weight pressure, body ideals and harmful dieting. And show jumping, which had its obviously negative sides exposed, strangely also won over Lundby’s bravery. Including that a so-called health certificate was finally introduced for jumpers as well. FIRST JUMPER: Maren Lundby in action in the first-ever World Cup show jumping race for women in 2009. Photo: NTB The latest successes Just over a year later, Maren Lundby was back on the ground. The last season offered hardships that she had never experienced early on on the ground. But also what is perhaps her greatest achievement in a glorious career. The silver in the WC on a large hill in Planica was a little against nature, after the health challenges she had had. The adult Maren Lundby managed to show qualities that the younger and lighter version of her would have been proud of. Including a completely unique winning instinct. Lundby’s only individual podium finish in the farewell season was this second place in the WC. When it mattered most. First among equal women, Maren Lundby officially made history as a ski jumper as early as 14 years old. She then had starting number 1 in the very first World Cup jumping race for women ever in Liberec, Czech Republic. The young tot was number 22 in the race. But the history book should contain many more pages. The last one came in Vikersund in March this year. Then Maren Lundby was the leading star among the 15 pioneers who jumped in the first official ski gliding race for women. A long-standing battle against male need for control and prejudice was over. HISTORIC: 15 women finally got to jump in Vikersund. Photo: Geir Olsen / NTB 90 years had passed since Johanne Kolstad had to travel to the USA to practice her sport, because women were not allowed to jump at Holmenkollen for fear of ruining the ground’s reputation. Lundby became our first female world champion in jumping. She became the first Olympic champion. And she became the one who won the first WC race on a large hill for women, an exercise she herself had helped to fight into the WC programme. She also managed to hold the world record for a few minutes at Vikersund, when she jumped 212.5 metres. STARTED YOUNG: 15 years old and WC ready. Photo: NTB In the next Olympics, in 2026, there will be two individual jumping exercises on the program for the first time on the slopes of the Italian Val di Fiemme. This is, despite the ski flying, in many ways the final recognition of the women. Because when even the IOC no longer sees any limitations in what the women will be allowed to participate in, they have proven the quality and breadth that was previously called for. And no men dare to talk about ski jumping as either harmful or inappropriate for women. At least not loud. Others take over Nine days before the first women’s ski jump, ski jumper Maren Lundby says thank you. And at the same time tells about when, as a girl, she made her own New Year’s jumping race in the garden at home at Toten. And there is symbolism in this too. “Others take over”, which nestor Arne Scheie often rounded off with from the commentary box. When Maren Lundby has shown how it can be done. This Monday in December, the tears were also back at the press conference at Gardermoen – but this time they were framed by a small smile. Because it was a clarified and clearly relieved Maren Lundby who told her that she was quitting. LEGEND: Bjørn Wirkola. Photo: NTB “I’m really looking forward to the future”, she said, before thanking the club Kolbu and the coaches Jermund Lunder and Christian Meyer, who flanked her on the podium. “You are up there with Birger Ruud and Bjørn Wirkola”, said Clas Brede Bråthen in his farewell greeting to his star. And he did it really out of politeness. For the two male jumping legends. Bråthen is, after all, the sports manager for an equal sport. Because the reality is that when Maren Lundby sets up, she does it like the Norwegian ski jumper of all time, regardless of gender.
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Maren Lundby – best when it really mattered – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcast schedule
