December 30 – Johnny Spillane (Steamboat Springs, CO) saw his first World Cup action Friday and finished 22nd in a nordic combined individual event as the schedule resumed with the start of the German Grand Prix. World Cup leader Hannu Manninen stormed to his fourth win of the season.

Manninen, again producing the fastest 15K race, out-skied Germany’s Ronny Ackermann by 7.2 seconds at the end of the 15K race with Norway’s Magnus Moan in third place.

Spillane had been sidelined with a separated right shoulder, which he suffered in training before the first competition last month in Kuusamo, Finland. He rehabbed the injury and rejoined the World Cup with this event; he jumped to 23rd place on the 140-meter large hill and had the 13th-fastest 15K time to finish 2:51.2 behind Manninen. Demong, 35th in jumping, had the seventh-fastest race, and moved up to 23rd, 2:56.4 out.

The German Grand Prix, the annual series within the World Cup series, continues Tuesday with a sprint event in Ruhpolding before concluding Jan. 6 in Schonach withthe traditional 15K individual.

WARSTEINER NORDIC COMBINED WORLD CUP
German Grand Pix
Oberhof, GER – Dec. 30, 2005
LH (HS140)/15K
1. Hannu Manninen, Finland, (18/1)
2. Ronny ackermann, Germany, (13/3) 7.2 seconds back
3. Magnus Moan, Norway, (26/4) 1:14.8
4. Jaakko Tallus, Finland, (4/20) 1:15.9
5. Daito Takahashi, Japan, (1/27) 1:16.9
–
22. Johnny Spillane, Steamboat Springs, Colo., (23/13) 2:51.2
23. Bill Demong, Vermontville, N.Y., (35/7) 2:56.4