We're in it together: How Japanese ski jumpers made team gold a reality

The story is told once every four years in Japan without fail, like a folk tale passed on from one generation to the next.

It goes like this:

At the Lillehammer 1994 Olympic Winter Games, the Japanese ski jumping team were on the cusp of a gold medal.

Going into the last round, with world champion Harada Masahiko waiting on the hill, Japan had a comfortable lead over Germany. It appeared a done deal.

But Jens Weissflog produced a huge jump for the Germans to cook up the pressure on Harada.

Harada then, lo and behold, fell apart as he failed to even reach the critical point and Japan settled for silver.

Four years later at home in Nagano, Japan, with Harada still in the fold, were determined to capture the elusive gold - but sat in fourth after the first round.

Then a blizzard suspended competition. First-round results would stand in the event of cancellation.

Officials laid down the conditions to keep competition going: all 25 test jumpers would have to complete their jumps.

Among the test jumpers was Harada’s team-mate from Lillehammer, Nishikata Jinya, who had failed to make the cut for Nagano due to injury.

As if fate would have it, Japan’s chances now rested in the hands of Nishikata - who had his gold-medal hopes dashed as a result of Harada’s flop four years before - and the 24 other jumpers.

They would come through. And Japan went on to win gold after Harada stepped up this time.

Harada - who served chief coordinator of the Japanese delegation for Beijing 2022 - and Nishikata will be intertwined for life.

Their story, through the eyes of Nishikata and his fellow unsung heroes, was made into a movie in 2021 titled Hinomaru Soul, referring to the Japanese flag.

It is a story that has inspired the current crop of Japanese jumpers, including the top stars Takanashi Sara and Kobayashi Ryoyu. Kobayashi went on to win two medals – a gold and a silver – in Beijing.

It is the story of every rise, every fall, every victory - of how we’re in it together.

“Ever since the Nagano Olympics in 1998, this gets told once every four years,” Nishikata said.

“I get asked what it was like then, it’s even a film now. But had I become a gold medallist (in Lillehammer), the story wouldn’t have turned out the way it did.

“So when I think about that, I’m at peace with the turn of events back then. I’m grateful now.

“I may not have won a gold medal but I really want to say, ‘Thank you’.”