Ski jumping is a Nordic skiing sport that has been featured in the Olympics since 1924, but has origins that can be traced much farther back. (Nordic skiing requires equipment with toe of the ski boot fixed to a binding allowing heel to lift off the ski, and includes sport of cross-country and Telemark skiing) In 19th century Norway, the first ski jumping competitions were held, and on November 22, 1808 in Eidsberg, Norway, the first ski jump of 9.5 meters (31 ft) by Danish military war hero, Olaf Rye, was recorded. Much has changed since that day as evolving technique and equipment have allowed ski jumpers to achieve greater and greater distances. ‘Ski flying’, a popular competitive winter sport in Slovenia and Norway, is an offshoot of ski jumping with the added danger of larger hills and longer jump distances.
What’s it like to take-off from a steep hill and fly through the air with a pair of skis strapped to your feet? Jumping the K120, a short video filmed at the Lake Placid Olympic Ski Jumping Complex, will give you an up-close perspective on just how high, fast and really scary the large hill ski jump really is.
In competition, each ski jump is divided into four segments: inrun, take-off (jump), flight, and landing, and is judged on distance as well as style, inrun length, weather and wind conditions. Scores from each skier’s two competition jumps are combined to determine a winner. The sport of ski jumping is governed by the Fédération Internationale de Ski (FIS). [Info: “How Does Scoring Work? by Kenneth J. Anderson, Ski Jumping USA] The current world record ski jump is 253.5 metres (832 ft), set by Austrian, Stefan Kraft, on March 18, 2017 at Vikersundbakken in Vikersund, Norway.
Ski jumping, along with cross country ski racing, is also an element of Nordic Combined competition formats.
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Even if you’ve never put on a pair of skis, you’ll want to watch these high flyers!
Athletes competing at the 2018 FIS Nordic Combined Continental Cup are fighting for a spot on their country’s World Cup team. If you missed the live stream broadcast of the ski jumping competition at Park City’s International Ski Jumping & Nordic Combined Festival (December 19-20,) there’s still time to watch video recordings of the competition. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button on the media players below ↓ You can watch Nordic Combined cross country ski racing → here
If you missed the live stream broadcast of the Nordic Combined Continental Cup ski jumping competition at Steamboat Springs on December 14, there’s still time to watch a video recording. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button located on the media player below ↓ Watch Nordic Combined Continental Cup cross country ski racing → here
Temps are were in the high 80’s at the Utah Olympic Park ski jumps in Park City …so, of course, it was absolutely perfect for ski jumping!
Ski jump training and competitions take place in summer on hills equipped for non-winter jumping (as at Utah Olympic Park). The special in-run is made of grooved porcelain tracks with a trickle of water running through that mimics the icy, snow-packed tracks of winter. The landing hill is made of green plastic “grass” that’s sprayed with water to reduce friction with a jumper’s skis. Jumpers can slide down a summer in-run just as fast and get as long a distance as in winter jumping; however, summer heat is often a factor for the athletes.
If you missed the live stream broadcast of 2018 US National Ski Jumping Championships (July 28-29), there’s still time to watch video recordings of both the Normal and Large Hill competitions. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button on the media players below ↓
Did you miss the 2018 Brattleboro US Cup in February? Still time to watch the competition here via video recording. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button on the media player below ↓
FREE To WATCH live streaming of 2018-19 US Ski SuperTour and 2018 FIS Nordic Combined Continental Cup cross country ski racing events
Watch: Downhill Runs – an On2In2™ collection of exhilarating and inspiring ski and snowboard videos. Sure to get you in the mood to hit the slopes! Free to watch, on-demand
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Photo of ski jumper is courtesy of Flickr user, Vegar S. Hansen, CC BY 2.0
