"Dangerous to life" Ski jumper is pushed down the hill by a mobile advertising hoarding

Ski jumper Kristoffer Eriksen Sundal narrowly escapes a potential catastrophe. The Norwegian is pushed down the hill by a mobile advertising board - and still manages to jump.

Norwegian ski jumper Kristoffer Eriksen Sundal experienced a moment of shock at the World Cup opener in Lillehammer and may have been very lucky. In the qualification for the first individual competition of the winter, the 23-year-old was almost involuntarily pushed into the inrun lane by the mobile advertising hoarding behind him. He still managed a safe jump and mastered the qualification.

In the outrun, however, Sundal was visibly upset and threw his gloves into the snow. "If I had had my arm between the beam and the advertising board, my body would have been pushed off and I would have got stuck, so I would probably have broken a joint or a shoulder," he was quoted as saying by Norwegian broadcaster NRK. "It's lucky that it went well."

Former national coach Schuster stunned

Former German coach Werner Schuster described the scene as "life-threatening" in his role as a TV pundit on Eurosport. "I'm glad that nothing happened," former Four Hills Tournament winner Sven Hannawald told ARD.

How could this happen? Immediately before Sundal's jump, the inrun had been shortened due to the changing wind conditions. The athlete had just taken his place on the beam when the advertising board behind him was lowered a little. However, it went too far, hit Sundal in the back and pushed last winter's overall World Cup 21st into the track. Sundal did not fall, however, but reacted with lightning speed - and ultimately jumped a respectable 132 meters. He finished the subsequent World Cup in seventh place.

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