The 5-kilometer cross-country phase of a Nordic Combined race is a severe test of will, a lung-searing sprint when top athletes push their bodies to the brink. At that moment, Nathalie Armbruster, a 19-year-old German prodigy who had already won three silver medals at the World Championships, had a complete breakdown.

During the race, her body completely froze up. In an unexpected moment reported by ski-nordique.net, Armbruster talked about the scary experience. “All of a sudden, my body has closed everything, it has dropped,” she recalled. “I wanted to move forward again, but it was no longer possible. I collapsed and thought it was now the end of the race.”

She lay there on the snow for a solid few seconds, completely immobilized as the rest of the field began skiing past her, before she pulled herself up and got her bearings.

“And then I stood there for a few seconds without moving and I thought to myself, no, I can’t reconcile myself to the idea of not finishing,” she recalled. She was determined, so she reached out to a staff member for a short while before continuing the race, pushing her tired body toward the finish line in the distance.

Her arrival at the finish was less a triumph and more a testament to sheer survival and that never-giving-up mentality, which has won her multiple medals during World Championships.

The 19-year-old German prodigy was so tired that she fell to the ground again. She needed medical help right away and was given a sugary drink to start her recovery. Later, her coach also commented on the accomplishment and gave more information about the skier’s situation.

The World Championships medalist’s coach gave the skier two clear options

Florian Aichinger, Nathalie Armbruster’s coach, said that the skier was “not quite in shape” before the race and that there had been a big crash on the track. His suggestion was really simple because he saw that she was in trouble. Aichinger stated, “I spoke to her briefly on the track and told her: Just keep going to the end if you can, otherwise you have to give up.”

The incident shows how hard Nordic Combined is on both the body and the mind. This sport combines the explosive strength of ski jumping with the grueling endurance of cross-country skiing. Also, Armbruster rushed to her Instagram hours after the race to post several stories about her experience and give an update on her own health.

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“I never lost consciousness, I was fully aware of everything, but I still couldn’t do anything about my legs suddenly giving way… not a pleasant feeling!” she said.

Watching the overwhelming support on social media, she expressed, “THANK YOU for all the good wishes, I will take care of myself and my body, because health is simply the most important thing! By far the toughest competition I’ve ever experienced, but these days happen and ultimately all that matters is that nothing serious happened! By the end of the day, I could even smile again!”

Her choice to stand up and finish, which was based on a simple refusal to accept a DNF, shows a strength that shows the kind of strength that defines a champion.