IOC Pulls Plug on Nordic Combined at 2030 Winter Olympics

The International Olympic Committee this week approved changes for the 2030 Winter Olympics, hosted in the French Alps, by adding freeride skiing and snowboarding and a nine-skater “Synchro9” figure skating event. The IOC also announced the removal of Nordic combined from the Games for the first time in the discipline’s 102-year Olympic history. Nordic combined pairs a ski jump with a cross-country ski race, converting each athlete’s jump score into a head-start or time deficit that sets their position at the start of the race. The decision makes Alpes 2030 the first Winter Games to achieve full gender parity, with 3,046 athletes—1,525 women and 1,521 men—expected to compete across 126 events. The IOC points to the addition of synchronized skating as a key factor in reaching that balance. Freeride skiing and snowboarding will add four events and 44 athletes to the program. Nordic combined’s removal was not a surprise to those following the IOC’s evaluation. A federation review found the discipline ranked lowest among Winter Olympic sports across several popularity indicators from Sochi 2014 through Milano Cortina 2026, finishing last in 11 of 14 metrics measured at the most recent Games. The IOC had considered expanding the discipline with additional women’s and team events to address its gender imbalance, but ultimately chose to remove it from the 2030 program. IOC President Kirsty Coventry acknowledged the difficult decision, telling Nordic combined athletes the organization understands the decision “may come as a disappointment,” while leaving the door open for the discipline to return at the 2034 Salt Lake City Games. Norwegian two-time overall World Cup champion Ida Marie Hagen, reacting to the news, said it was “a shock that will take time to process” and that she hoped a future generation of athletes would still get an Olympic chance in the sport. For U.S. Ski & Snowboard, which oversees the American Nordic combined program, the IOC decision creates a financial challenge as much as a competitive one. The organization has been on a significant commercial upswing. CEO Sophie Goldschmidt has said U.S. Ski & Snowboard is on pace to generate roughly $70 million in revenue this fiscal year, more than double its $32.1 million in 2022. That growth has been fueled by corporate partnerships with companies including Cloudflare, Stifel, Dunkin’ and United Airlines, along with hospitality ventures such as the Crest Club. However, much of that commercial investment has been funneled to the organization’s most visible Olympic programs: alpine, freeski, freestyle and cross-country. Nordic combined, a smaller discipline without the same sponsorship appeal or medal expectations, has largely remained outside that spotlight. To further emphasize that, Nordic combined was not included in the naming-rights partnership that Stifel holds across several of U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s marquee programs. The loss of an Olympic event for 2030 could make that gap wider. National governing bodies typically direct sponsorship revenue, athlete services and U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee funding toward sports with the strongest competitive outlook and commercial opportunities. Without an Olympic competition to build toward, Nordic combined could face pressure for resources to shift toward disciplines that will appear in Alpes 2030, including freeride, a new program U.S. Ski & Snowboard will need to develop. The eight-year Olympic absence could force current Nordic combined athletes to reconsider their careers or explore adjacent sports, such as ski jumping or cross-country skiing. Austrian medalist Lukas Klapfer protested the decision by posting an Instagram story of himself throwing his medals in the trash, writing that the IOC was “throwing away dreams in the trash.” Still, U.S. Ski & Snowboard is unlikely to immediately shut down the program. World Championships, World Cup competition and the possibility of a return at the 2034 Winter Games in Utah provide enough incentive to maintain a presence and preserve the infrastructure built around the sport. The bigger question is whether that support can continue without an Olympic spotlight. Unless a sponsor steps in specifically to support Nordic combined or additional funding is dedicated to discontinued-but-eligible Olympic sports, the discipline risks facing a slower decline, losing resources over time rather than disappearing through a single decision.