Following a three-week-long holiday break, U.S. Nordic combined athletes Alexa Brabec, Tara Geraghty-Moats, and Annika Malacinski opened the second phase of the 2025-26 World Cup in a triumphant manner, capping the competition in Otepaa, Estonia, with top-10 finishes in the compact/normal hill.

Despite severe wind which cancelled the jumping rounds in two of the three events, the three American women battled across the finish line in all three of the weekend's events, marking the continuation of a surge in American success in the sport which began with Brabec this season.

The 21-year-old — who made history at the women's season opener in Trondheim, Norway, by ending the United States' five-year-long World Cup medal drought in the sport — continued her climb to the top in Otepaa, finishing 4th twice (mass start/normal hill, Gunderson/normal hill) before earning bronze in the compact/normal hill for her fourth podium finish of the 2025-26 campaign.

Ranked 2nd globally, Brabec has earned two bronze medals and two silvers across her seven events so far this season. In the other three events, she has placed just off the podium in 4th. Following the weekend in Otepaa, Brabec also stands as the 3rd-best skier and the 5th-best jumper on the Nordic Combined World Cup.

It is the first time an American Nordic combined athlete — man or woman — consistently has ranked inside the top five since Geraghty-Moats in 2021.

Geraghty-Moats, who this season made her return to the Nordic Combined World Cup after five years, finished 6th in the compact/normal hill. 

Originally a cross-country skier and biathlete, Geraghty-Moats was the No. 1 Nordic combined athlete in the world for three straight seasons before she temporarily left the sport. She won back-to-back Continental Cups during the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons and secured the first-ever women's overall World Cup title the following campaign before returning to biathlon in 2021. 

Now, 32 years old, Geraghty-Moats has reentered the Nordic combined world (though she still is active on the Biathlon World Cup circuit), competing for the first time at the Trondheim World Cup in early December. There, she landed in the top 20 in both of her events, placing 19th in the Gunderson/normal hill and 18th in the mass start/normal hill. In Otepaa, she improved to 13th in the Gunderson/normal hill.

Despite the fact that Otepaa marked just her second appearance this season, Geraghty-Moats is ranked as the 4th-best skier on the Nordic Combined World Cup circuit.

Malacinski, the 24-year-old who stands as the second-highest-ranked American in 12th, rounded out the compact/normal hill top 10 in 10th place for her best finish in an individual World Cup event nearly in two years. Her last individual top-10 finish also came in Estonia, during the mass start/normal hill at the Otepaa World Cup on Feb. 9, 2024.

Earlier in the weekend, Malacinski finished 18th in the mass start/normal hill and 14th in the Gunderson/normal hill. She has finished inside the top 15 in five of her seven events so far this season.

The American men found their highest finish behind Malacinski's brother, Niklas, who placed 19th in the men's Gunderson/normal hill. Ben Loomis finished inside the top 30 in all three of his events. In the compact race, Erik Lynch skied up 16 spots for a 34th-place finish, while Henry Johnstone raced from 55th at the starting line to 35th — personal best performances for both athletes.

Nordic combined is the only Olympic sport, winter or summer, which does not include a women's competition. The International Olympic Committee is expected to make a decision regarding whether or not to include the event on the 2030 Olympic program shortly after the 2026 Games in Milan Cortina.

The 2025-26 World Cup continues January 16-18 in Oberhof, Germany. Nordic combined at the 2026 Winter Olympics begins February 11.