Ski jumping

Ski jumping is a winter sport where athletes slide down a special curved ramp on skis and try to jump as far as possible. Their score depends not only on how far they jump but also on how well they land and their style in the air. This sport began in Norway in the late 1800s and later became popular in Europe and North America.

A ski jumping venue, called a "hill," includes a ramp, a takeoff spot, and a landing area. Judges give points for distance and style, with each judge able to give up to 20 points for style. Over time, techniques have changed from holding skis parallel to using a "V-style" in the air, which is common today.

Ski jumping has been part of the Winter Olympics since 1924 and the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships since 1925. Women started competing internationally in the 1990s, and the first women's Olympic event happened in 2014. All major competitions are organized by the International Ski Federation.

Ski jumping can also happen in summer at special facilities that mimic snow. These summer events use tracks made from smooth porcelain materials instead of snow. The top summer competition is the FIS Ski Jumping Grand Prix, which began in 1994.

History

Ski jumping started in Norway during the 1800s. The first known jump happened in 1808 when a person named Olaf Rye jumped about 9.5 meters. Later, Sondre Norheim, known as the "father" of modern ski jumping, won the first competition with prizes in 1866.

Big competitions began in Oslo in 1875 but moved to Holmenkollen in 1892 because of weather and other problems. Ski jumping became an Olympic sport in Chamonix, France, in 1924 and has been part of the Olympics ever since.

The sport grew in other places too. In Canada, a man named Nels Nelsen brought ski jumping to Mount Revelstoke in 1915. This spot held competitions for many years and was famous for very long jumps.

In Planica, Slovenia, a new style called ski flying began in 1935. The first jump over 100 meters happened there, and later, in 1994, someone jumped over 200 meters.

Rules

Hills

A ski jumping hill is built on a steep slope and has a special ramp called the in-run. Ski jumpers slide down this ramp, reach high speeds, and then launch into the air. While flying, they keep their bodies and skis in a good position to go as far as possible. The landing area is designed to match their path so they land safely and can slow down on a flat area.

Scoring system

Ski jumpers get points for how far they jump and how well they land. Judges give points for style, like keeping their skis steady and landing well. Points also change based on wind and where they start the jump. If two jumpers have the same score, they share the same place and prize.

Techniques

For details, see Ski jumping techniques.

Each jump in ski jumping has four parts: the run-up, the jump, the flight in the air, and the landing.

Modern skiers use the V-style, first used by Swedish jumper Jan Boklöv in the 1980s. This style helps them jump about 10% farther than older methods. Other past styles include the Kongsberger technique, the Windisch technique, and the Däscher technique. Skiers must land in the Telemark style, named after the Norwegian county of Telemark. This means landing with one foot ahead of the other and knees bent. If they don’t land this way, they lose points from judges.

Major competitions

All major ski jumping competitions are organized by the International Ski Federation.

The large hill ski jumping event was first included at the Winter Olympic Games in 1924 and has been part of every Winter Olympics since. The normal hill event was added in 1964. Women’s ski jumping debuted at the Winter Olympics in 2014.

The FIS Ski Jumping World Cup began in the 1979–80 season. It takes place between November and March each year, with 25–30 competitions at famous hills in Europe, the United States, and Japan. Competitors earn points based on their rankings, and the overall winner is the one with the most points. The FIS Ski Flying World Cup is a special part of the World Cup where only points from ski flying hills count.

Ski jumping at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships started in 1925. The team event was introduced in 1982, and women’s events began in 2009.

The FIS Ski Flying World Championships first took place in 1972 in Planica.

The Four Hills Tournament has been held since the 1952–53 season. It occurs around New Year’s Day at four venues: two in Germany (Oberstdorf and Garmisch-Partenkirchen) and two in Austria (Innsbruck and Bischofshofen). These events are also part of the World Cup, but they use a slightly different format. The overall winner is decided by adding up scores from each jump.

Other competitions organized by the International Ski Federation include the FIS Ski Jumping Grand Prix, Continental Cup, FIS Cup, FIS Race, and Alpen Cup.

Women's participation

In January 1863 in Trysil Municipality, Norway, a 16-year-old girl named Ingrid Olsdatter Vestby became the first known female ski jumper to compete. Women started competing at high levels during the 2004–05 Continental Cup season, with the International Ski Federation organizing three women's team events.

Women made their first appearance at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Liberec, with American ski jumper Lindsey Van becoming the first world champion. In the 2011–12 season, women competed for the first time in the World Cup. The first event was held on December 3, 2011, at Lysgårdsbakken in Lillehammer, Norway. Sarah Hendrickson was the first-ever female World Cup winner and also became the first women's World Cup overall champion.

In the 2022–23 season, women competed for the first time in ski flying. This historic event took place at Vikersundbakken in Vikersund on March 19, 2023, and was won by Slovenian jumper Ema Klinec.

Olympic Games

In 2006, the International Ski Federation suggested that women could compete at the 2010 Winter Olympics, but this idea was turned down because there were not enough athletes and countries involved at that time. Later, women's ski jumping was included in the 2014 Winter Olympics with a normal hill event, and the first Olympic champion was Carina Vogt. The Nordic Combined event, which includes cross-country skiing and ski jumping, does not have a women's competition.

Record jumps

For the world records, see List of longest ski jumps.

See also: List of national ski-jumping records

Since 1936, when the first jump beyond 100 metres (330 ft) was made, all world records in the sport have been made in the discipline of ski flying. On 30 March 2025 the official world record for the longest ski jump was set at 254.5 m (835 ft), by Domen Prevc at Letalnica bratov Gorišek in Planica, Slovenia. In a non-official event near Akureyri on Iceland, in April 2024 Ryōyū Kobayashi achieved a distance of 291 m (955 ft) after 10 seconds in the air and landing smoothly.

Nika Prevc holds the women's world record at 242.5 metres (795 feet), set on 27 March 2026 in Letalnica bratov Gorišek in Planica.

The lists below show the progression of world records through history at 50-meter milestones. Only official results are listed; invalid jumps are not included.

Men

Women

Tandem

Perfect-score jumps

Those who have managed to show a perfect jump, which means that all five judges attributed the maximum style score of 20 points for their jumps. Kazuyoshi Funaki, Sven Hannawald and Wolfgang Loitzl were attributed 4x20 (plus another 19.5) style score points for their second jump, thus receiving nine times the maximum score of 20 points within one competition. Kazuyoshi Funaki and Daniel Tschofenig are the only jumpers in history who achieved this more than once. So far only ten jumpers have achieved a perfect score:

Health risks

Ski jumping can be risky. Athletes have sometimes had serious injuries like broken bones or head injuries after falling during jumps. Some athletes have also talked about feeling a lot of pressure in this sport.

There have been concerns about athletes trying to keep very low body weight, which can be unhealthy. Rules were created to help make sure athletes stay healthy, but some people think more needs to be done to support them.