Latest news with #SkiJumpingWorldCup
Japan Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- Japan Today
Ski jumping's suit trouble is back ahead of Olympics as numerous athletes disqualified
FILE - Kristoffer Eriksen Sundal from Norway at the men's Ski Jumping World Cup event at the Gross-Titlis Schanze, in Engelberg, Switzerland, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (Philipp Schmidli/Keystone via AP, File) By JAMES ELLINGWORTH The right suit can help send a ski jumper soaring to gold. The wrong suit will get you grounded. Ski jumping faces more controversy with six months to go until the Winter Olympics after the first high-level competition of the new season saw numerous athletes disqualified over ill-fitting suits. The governing body says it's 'perfectly normal.' The ski jumping world was rocked in March by the discovery of illegally altered suits on the Norwegian team at the world championships. The International Ski Federation investigated officials and athletes over those changes which could help the wearer soar through the air for longer with the suit's larger surface area. In Saturday's first event of the 2025-26 season — a summer Grand Prix event on an artificial surface in France — six male ski jumpers were disqualified because of suit issues such as waist size and three more were 'not permitted to start.' Another jumper from Japan was blocked from competing as the Grand Prix continued Sunday. The federation told The Associated Press in an e-mailed statement that it's treating the spate of disqualifications as the natural result of tightening up the rules after the Norwegian suit scandal. FIS race director Sandro Pertile said he doesn't think anyone was trying to cheat and that fewer disqualifications will occur as teams get used to the rules. Making specialized ski jumping equipment is 'a fairly complicated matter,' he said. 'It's perfectly normal for teams to need some time to adapt to the new situation after such comprehensive changes to the equipment regulations. Some cope with it straight away, others find it difficult at first," Pertile told the AP. 'It's also important to highlight that these disqualifications are clearly a result of technical inadequacies — there's no sign whatsoever of ill intent from the teams.' FIS indicated that a further nine men and five women didn't compete following a 'technical approval' process, though it wasn't clear if all of those cases involved their suits. Five of those 14 were on the United States team, which didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Among those disqualified Saturday was Norway's Kristoffer Eriksen Sundal, who had previously been provisionally suspended earlier this year following the world championships. FIS signaled it will remain rigorous in its checks through the Olympic season but expects to find athletes wearing increasingly snug — and therefore legal — suits. 'The teams know that they have our full support, and we expect the number of disqualifications to decrease significantly in the coming weeks,' Pertile said. "With that said, we will remain strict and precise with equipment check the whole season long; there is no room for exceptions.' © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
CNN
31-03-2025
- Sport
- CNN
Domen Prevc breaks world record with 254.5-meter ski jump
Slovenian Domen Prevc soared to a new ski jump world record of 254.5 meters (roughly 835 feet) on Sunday, much to the delight of the home fans in Planica. Prevc produced the huge jump – the equivalent length of close to two-and-a-half football fields – in the second round of the Ski Jumping World Cup event, which marked the end of the season. It was a meter further than Austrian Stefan Kraft's previous record of 253.5 meters, set in March 2017, but wasn't enough for the 25-year-old to take the victory in front of 17,000 fans in Planica. That went to compatriot Anže Lanišek, who claimed his second win of the season with an overall score of 482.1 points to Prevc's 475. 'This is the sweetest story that even Hollywood directors would have difficulty imagining,' Prevc wrote on Instagram. 'Thank you, everyone, for creating this story and for the unforgettable season!' Earlier this month, Prevc won the large hill world title in Trondheim, Austria, as well as a gold in the team event and silver in the mixed team. Japan's Ryōyū Kobayashi jumped a distance of 291 meters on a specially-created natural ramp in northern Iceland last year, but the attempt didn't meet the conditions laid out by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) so wasn't recognized as a world record.
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Prevc sets world record in ski jumping
Slovenia's Domen Prevc reacts after he set the new world record at fter the HS240 ski flying event at the Ski Jumping World Cup finals in Planica, Slovenia, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
