Jens WEISSFLOG

Ski jumper Jens Weissflog overcame a loss of form to claim a second Olympic gold medal 10 years after winning his first.

Golden debut

Aged just 19, Jens Weissflog won a gold medal on the K90 (normal hill) and a silver on the K120 (large hill) at the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Games. It was a sensational Olympic debut, and future expectations for him were high.

Difficult times

Weissflog’s career took a turn for the worse after Sarajevo. He was hampered by injury and struggled with the new V-style jumping technique. Although he competed in both the 1988 and 1992 Winter Games, he could do no better than ninth place in any individual event.

The comeback

However, Weissflog refused to give up and rediscovered his form at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Games. He performed a brilliant second jump in the large hill event to catapult himself to first place for the first time in 10 years. This made him the only 1984 Winter Games gold medallist to win a gold in Lillehammer. Two days later he earned another gold medal in the team event.