Shohei Tochimoto of Japan is seen in action during day two of the FIS World Ski Jump Competition on January 24, 2009 at Whistler Olympic Park in Whistler, British Columbia. (Al Bello/Getty Images) Ski jumping began as a show of courage in 1809 when Olaf Rye, a Norwegian lieutenant, ski jumped 9.5 metres in the air before an audience of his soldiers. He was seeking a way to demonstrate his bravery and fortitude to his troops, and in performing this stunt, he became the first known ski jumper.
In 1860, the Norwegian carpenter and ski-maker Sondre Nordheim jumped a distance of 30m. Nordheim also invented the first operational ski binding and was revered as one of the great pioneers of modern skiing. Local jumping competitions were soon held across the country and referees and rules were added as the sport evolved. In 1892, the Norwegian Royal family lent their patronage to the sport and held the King's Cup at Holmenkollen near Oslo.
Scandinavian immigrants introduced the sport to Canada in 1880. In British Columbia, ski clubs formed in Revelstoke and Rossland and a friendly rivalry developed between the two clubs through the 1920s. The in-run on the Revelstoke skill hill measured over 600m from top to bottom, and athletes from across the country broke ski-jumping records there. Ski jumpers later tested the runs in the Rockies, on wooden trestles in the Prairies, and down the Rockland Park cliffs in Ottawa.
In 1924, ski jumping was included at the first Winter Games in Chamonix, France. Norwegians Jacob Thams, Narve Bonna and Thorleif Haug swept the medals. World championships for ski jumping began one year later. The first major star would also be a Norwegian, Birger Ruud, who won the K90 Olympic gold medals in 1932 and 1936.
As the sport continued to evolve, jumpers strove for greater distance and speed. A 120m jump was constructed at Placia in Yugoslavia in 1948, and a 135m jump was built in Oberstdorf in Bavaria in 1950. These longer jumps gave the athletes more time to test out different aerodynamic positions thereby increasing distance and success. In 1964, the normal hill event at the Olympics was supplemented with a large hill event. Ski Jumping is currently a men’s only event at the Olympics.
The Flying V and the Flying Finn
Matti Nykanen of Finland holds his skies aloft after the 90 metres Ski Jump event at the 1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary, Canada. (Allsport UK/Getty Images)In 1985, Swedish jumper Jan Boklov tested the limits by positioning his airborne skis in a V-shaped position. The judges, who preferred to see the skis locked together in a parallel alignment under the skier's body, penalized Boklov, and his opponents laughed at him. But his innovative technique allowed for 28-per-cent more lift than the parallel ski style and was ultimately copied by most of his peers. Boklov won the World Cup title in 1988.
But there was no stopping the greatest Flying Finn of all — many consider him the greatest ski jumper ever — from sweeping the medals in 1988. Matti Nykanen won four gold medals between 1984 and 1988 as he reigned over ski jumping in the 1980s.
No one has had a better sense of occasion, however, than the Japanese. Yukio Kasaya won ski jumping gold at the 1972 Sapporo Games, and 26 years later, Kazuyoshi Funaki thrilled the home fans at the 1998 Nagano Games by winning an individual gold and anchoring the Japanese to the gold in the team event.
Today, athletes from more than 25 countries compete in World Cup and Continental Cup events. Ski jumpers from Norway, Finland, Germany, Japan and Austria dominate the sport. Many hills have been summer-proofed with plastic sheets to allow for practice in the off-season. Improved bindings and boots allow for greater lift, and the hills have been modified to better fit the flight path of the jumper.
At the 2006 Torino Games, Austria, Norway and Finland stayed true to tradition.
Finland’s Lars Bystøl earned gold in the 90m, while 19 year-old Thomas Morgenstern took the 120m event, and also helped his fellow Austrian competitors earn gold in the team event.
After failing to field a team in 2002, Canada sent four athletes to Torino, but no skiers were able to qualify for the final round.
