Romania’s Râșnov mountain resort hosts Ski Jumping World Cup
Râșnov, a town in Romania's Brașov county, hosts the Ski Jumping World Cup between February 16 and 19. The competition will take place at night with the help of the resort’s new lights system.
The lights and other special equipment borrowed from Austria for the event have already arrived at the Râșnov Olympic Complex for Winter Sports, transported by helicopters in ten separate groups of 10-12 reflectors each.
"The Brasov County Council has allocated a sum of RON 565,000 (EUR 115,000) to be used strictly for the night lighting equipment. The Râșnov City Hall has also been involved in the prize and other objectives that need to be achieved. In my opinion, this is the biggest event in Romania. I don't think Romania has ever held such a large sporting event," said Adrian Veștea, head of the Brasov County Council, cited by G4Media.
According to the new regulations, the stages of the World Cup take place at night because this provides better visibility for the competition, which attracts a larger number of spectators who follow the event.
"Râșnov has one of the most technical ski jumping hills in the world. The World Championships will also use the 100-meter hill, and they have come here, of course, to score as many points as possible and set new records," said Puiu Gașpar, secretary general of the Romanian Ski Biathlon Federation.
Four stages of the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup are scheduled this year: two stages in the women's competition, individual races, and two stages in the men's competition, one individual and the second in the Super Team event.
The women’s competitions are scheduled for Friday afternoon, 4:00 PM, and Saturday morning, starting at 10 AM. The men will have an official training session on Friday, followed by the individual competitions on Saturday afternoon, at 4:15 PM for qualifiers and 5:00 PM for the first round of the competition. Qualifiers for the Super Team competition will take place on Sunday at 4:00 PM, followed by the first round, starting at 5:00 PM.
The start list includes the best female athletes in the world. Only German national Andreas Wellinger will be present from among the top 10 male athletes in the world.
(Photo source: Iacob Danny | Dreamstime.com)