Beijing 2022 ski jumping wrap up – top stories, moments and records
Ursa Bogataj, Kobayashi Ryoyu and Marius Lindvik are just some of the names now inscribed in the Olympic history books after a thrilling Beijing 2022 ski jumping competition.
Ski Jumping
New stars shone brightly in the Beijing 2022 ski jumping competition as the world's best soared high and far on their quest for Olympic glory.
The first victory went to Slovenia's Ursa Bogataj in the women's normal hill who needed a thrilling comeback to take the title after sitting in second place following her first jump. With the pressure on, she flew 100 metres through the air to win her maiden Olympic gold.
In the men's normal hill, Japan's Kobayashi Ryoyu entered the tournament as the favourite and didn't disappoint. With jumps of 145.4m and 129.6m, the 2022 Four Hills champion ended Japan's 50-year wait for a normal hill gold medal.
Then on 7 February, the ski jumping competition served up an Olympic first, with the debut of the mixed team event. The Slovenian quartet made up of Kriznar, Bogataj, Timi Zajc and Peter Prevc took a historic gold, with ROC and Canada chasing close behind in the silver and bronze positions.
READ MORE: Slovenia leaps to first ever ski jumping mixed team gold at Beijing 2022
But the action did not stop there.
In a surprise result in the men's large hill competition, it was Norway's Marius Lindvik who flew farthest, beating Japan's Kobayashi who slipped from first to the silver medal position on his final jump.
And the final event of the Games was equally thrilling, as the Austrians secured Olympic gold on their very last jump to win the men's team competition.
Top three moments
1 - Kobayashi turns pre-Games favourite tag into Olympic title
Japan's Kobayashi came into the Games having enjoyed a stellar season, highlighted by his victory in the prestigious Four Hills tournament. However, questions remained about how he would do on the Olympic stage, with his first outing at PyeongChang 2018 resulting in a seventh-place finish in the normal hill and 10th in the large hill.
However, all doubts were emphatically answered in the very first individual men's competition of Beijing 2022, where despite being the only athlete in the field to not attempt a training jump, the 25-year-old soared to victory to win Japan's first normal hill gold since Sapporo 1972.
READ MORE: Kobayashi Ryoyu soars to gold in men's normal hill ski jumping final
2 - Bogataj breaks duck to become first ski jumper from Slovenia to win gold
Bogataj entered these Olympic Winter Games with an unenviable record. While she has long been recognised as one of the biggest talents on the ski jumping circuit, the 26-year-old had never tasted victory in a major event.
Until Beijing.
After a second jump of 100 metres, Bogataj won normal hill gold - and with it the first ski jumping title ever by a Slovenian. However, not content with one Olympic title, she added a second just two days later in the mixed team event.
READ MORE: Ursa Bogataj soars to women's ski jumping normal hill individual gold
3 - Marius Lindvik soars far and long for large hill gold
Before the men's large hill competition began, the name on everyone's lips was that of Kobayashi - winner of the normal hill gold just days earlier. Even after the first jump, things seemed to be going exactly to plan for the Japanese athlete as he stood top of the standings ahead of Norway's Marius Lindvik.
However, in a moment that shocked the ski jumping world, the 23-year-old Lindvik registered a massive second jump of 140m to beat Kobayashi by two clear points and claim his first Olympic medal.
What they said
Today I had only good feelings when I was performing. At the last Olympics [where Kobayashi finished seventh in the normal hill] I realised many things that I was missing so this time I did what I had to do. This is why I got the victory.
Olympic champion Kobayashi Ryoyu of Japan after his normal hill triumph on 6 February
I didn't expect it. The last Olympic Games were a little bit of a nightmare for me but today I couldn't believe how well it went. It was two good jumps and it was enough. Maybe today I was lucky, pressure was high. I still can't believe it. I had injuries in the past and a little bit of hard times, and maybe the hard work paid off.
Slovenian gold medallist Ursa Bogataj following her victory in the women's normal hill on 5 February
Full medal list in ski jumping at Beijing 2022
Women’s normal hill:
Gold: Ursa Bogataj (Slovenia)
Silver: Katharina Althaus (Germany)
Bronze: Nika Kriznar (Slovenia)
Men’s normal hill:
Gold: Kobayashi Ryoyu (Japan)
Silver: Manuel Fettner (Austria)
Bronze: Dawid Kubacki (Poland)
Mixed team:
Gold: Slovenia
Silver: ROC
Bronze: Canada
Men's large hill
Gold: Marius Lindvik (Norway)
Silver: Kobayashi Ryoyu (Japan)
Bronze: Karl Geiger (Germany)
Men's team
Gold: Austria
Silver: Slovenia
Bronze: Germany