Winter Olympics, Nordic combined is not a sport for women: the absurd taboo that must fall as soon as possible

Unthinkable in 2026 but true, a sport, Olympic since the first edition Chamonix 1924, is only for men: we are talking about Nordic combined, that mix of cross-country skiing and ski jumping, which is inaccessible for women as an Olympic sport. In fact, despite the protests, the taboo did not fall even in the Milan – Cortina edition, and, this time too, the competition remained male-only.

In particular, the races were divided into three distinct events: individual pursuit of small hill/10 km cross country, individual pursuit of long hill/10 km cross country and team sprint. All strictly male only.

Although – be careful – there are international women’s competitions, even of the highest level. And the protests started right from there, but this time too the IOC (International Olympic Committee) did not want to give in.

Annika Malacinskian American Nordic combined athlete, at the last women’s World Cup, led a protest that went around the web: “No eXception” (“No exception”), with the athletes crossing their poles precisely to remember the X.

The women of Nordic Combined are being denied the opportunity to realize their dream of becoming Olympians – we read on the athlete’s Instagram page – This is about fairness, inclusion and the future of our sport. We must ask the International Olympic Committee to abide by these standards

In reality, this absurdity perhaps hides another problem: sport seems to have suffered a decline in interest among men too, so much so that in 2020 in Beijing there were 55 athletes, while in this last Olympics there were just 36.

Women could therefore even save this sporting discipline, encouraging investments by national federations. But we still remain entrenched in patriarchal positions, which are frankly incomprehensible as well as unacceptable.