One would expect that athletes competing at the Nordic combined event, would participate in the cross-country skiing event as well, as they would have the opportunity to win more than one medal. This was not always the case due to the maximum number of athletes that could represent a country per event.
It's common for athletes participating in the Nordic combined event to also compete in cross-country skiing, as it increases their chances of winning more than one medal. However, this wasn't always true because of restrictions on the number of athletes each nation could field at a given event.