Abigail Strate Takes Silver and Second-Straight World Cup Ski Jumping Medal in Germany
Oberstdorf, Ger.— Benefitting from an Indigenous smudging ceremony led by her teammate, Canada’s Abigail Strate flew into the New Year with her second-straight World Cup ski jumping medal and best result of her career, taking the silver in Oberstdorf, Germany on Monday.
“I feel like I’m still at the top of the jump. It just feels like a dream,” said Strate.
After a slow start to the season, the certified beekeeper from Calgary has been buzzing over the last week. She closed out 2023 on Saturday with her second-ever World Cup bronze medal in Garmisch. Strate then got 2024 off to a medal-winning start after racking up 269.4 points on the large hill in Oberstdorf, Germany.
“I thought one podium can sometimes be viewed as a fluke, but two is definitely no fluke,” added Strate, who sits seventh in the overall World Cup standings. “It is very exciting, realizing what is possible. At the beginning of the year, I didn’t think it was. I know there are still things to fix which is blowing my mind. I never thought I’d be in this position.”
Austria’s Eva Pinkelnig edged the colourful Canuck out for the gold medal with 272.1 points. Norway’s Eirin Maria Kvandal placed third at 261.6 points.
Canada’s Alex Loutitt – the reigning senior and junior World Champion – was hunting down her fourth podium of the season but dropped to sixth spot after the final leap with 259.8 points.
“There is never a time that I want an athlete to beat me, but today I was happy for Abi to beat me. She performed so well, and we have now only missed the podium as a team one weekend,” said Loutitt. “(Abi and I) have both gone through the tough times. As someone who sees her every day, and sees the suffering that goes into it, it feels so good to see her have success. We are on a team that shares the same drive and wants the same things, so I am very happy for her.”
The only other podium finish in Strate’s eight-year career came nearly one year ago when she won the bronze in Hinterzarten, Germany. She also has three, fourth place finishes and finished sixth overall on the 2023 Summer Grand Prix with four top-six finishes.
The silver-medal triumph also solidified Strate third place in the unique Two Hills Tournament. Results were accumulated over the last two events over the holiday season in Germany.
The 22-year-old Calgarian scored 247.4 points over her two leaps, covering distances of 131 and 130.5 metres on the large hill.
Similar to Saturday’s breakthrough performance, Strate was sitting in fourth spot after her first leap. Known as the “Bee” in the ski jumping world, Strate sat in the gate at the top of the HS137 Hill, glanced down at the lucky bee sticker she has placed on her right ski as she always does, and soared to the silver-medal step of the podium.
“I was trying not to look at the scores. It was very tight, and I knew anything can happen if you have a good jump in the second round,” said Strate. “You can always move up. I was just focused on the technical things Janko (Zwitter – coach) and I have been working on. Things are just clicking in my brain on what I have to do at the top of the jump right now.”
Since shocking the world in 2022 to win the country’s first-ever ski jumping medal at an Olympic Winter Games when they took the bronze in Beijing, Strate and her Canadian ski jumping mates have been succeeding against the longest of odds.
Facility closures at home forced a new strategy to relocate the team’s national program to Planica, Slovenia two years ago. Living out of suitcases, access to minimal equipment, often seen using hand-me-downs, the small but mighty team of four Canadian women under 25 years old have consistently delivered medals at the elite level of the sport with multiple athletes matching flight paths with the world’s best. With no queen bee, and all four of the women’s team members working hard and doing their jobs to find success as a nation, Strate has drawn a parallel between a hive and the Canadian women’s ski jump team based in Slovenia.
“We do kind of operate in a hive mindset. The team always surprises me with all of the support, and I am also excited to be that person for my teammates,” said Strate, who added the team sits fourth as a nation in the World Cup standings. “I do think that it is (our secret weapon). That support gives us an edge. Sport can be fragile, and we have something that is special. I know if we stick together, we will continue to be unstoppable.”
The support and camaraderie in the Canadian hive was on full display this weekend.
Thousands of kilometres away from their family and friends during the holiday season, living and training in the darkness of Europe’s winter months, the 19-year-old Alex Loutitt leaned on her Nihtat Gwich’in roots to start the 2024 New Year on a fresh note by leading a smudging ceremony that was embraced by all of the coaches and team members.
“Being part Indigenous, the smudging is something my mom has encouraged. I think whether you believe it works or not, whether you are spiritual or you think it is ridiculous, I think it was a good bonding moment for our entire team of athletes and coaches,” said Loutitt. “Having different traditions and doing stuff like this as a team is so important. No other team in the world would do this, and it is an important part of Canadian history and who we are. I think it helped get us a little lighter on our feet today.”
Loutitt has brought her share of international hardware back to the hive over the last two years. She was back hunting down the podium once again in Oberstdorf.
The top qualifier earlier in the day, Loutitt was sitting in second spot at the midway point of the competition but landed shy of the podium following her second leap.
“I’ve been struggling a bit since Engelberg, but today I think it was a good day for me to help turn things around,” said Loutitt, who sits fourth overall in the World Cup standings after opening the 2023-24 World Cup season with two silvers and one bronze medal.
With one month until her 24th birthday, Canada’s Nicole Maurer has also taken a leap forward in her development this year, consistently qualifying with the top-40 for official competition rounds. Maurer narrowly missed advancing to the final round with the elite 30, placing 31st.
The team will now travel to Austria for the next World Cup stop, January 3-4.
Complete World Cup Ski Jumping Results – Oberstdorf, Germany
Ski Jumping Canada is the governing federation for ski jumping in Canada. It is responsible for the governance of all ski jumping competitions in Canada and for the operation of the national team. For more information, please visit skijumpingcanada.com.