Canadian ski jumper Abi Strate impressed in her World Cup season opener by clinching a silver medal at the large hill event in Lillehammer, Norway. Strate, a Calgary native, achieved distances of 129 and 121 meters, accumulating 259.7 points across the competition’s two rounds. Nozomi Maruyama of Japan claimed the gold with 285.5 points, and Lisa Eder of Austria secured the bronze with 255.4 points.
Nicole Mauer of Canada finished in 22nd place with 205.3 points. Reflecting on her performance, Strate expressed her satisfaction, stating, “Not a bad start. It feels really good. I can’t really process that this is the life I’m living right now. I’ve struggled in this sport for so long. I always look at the top athletes with so much awe and now I’m up there regularly with them. Yes, it feels comfortable right now, but it’s insane.”
This podium finish in Lillehammer marked Strate’s sixth World Cup podium appearance in her career, matching her career-best performance from nearly two years ago in Obertsdorf, Germany. Strate highlighted her qualifying jump as the best one, emphasizing the importance of remaining calm and focused during the competition.
Looking ahead to the upcoming Olympics in Milano-Cortina in February, Strate’s strong start to the season bodes well for her performance. She was part of Canada’s historic bronze-medal winning mixed team event in Beijing in 2022 and also triumphed at an Olympic test event in Predazzo, Italy, this past September.