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Kamil Stoch Wins Large Hill Ski Jumping, Completes Rare Double Sweep

By Patricia Didelot
Published on: 09:27 PST, Feb 15, 2014

Poland’s Kamil Stoch has completed a rare double in ski jumping when he captured the gold for both large and normal hill at the Sochi Winter Olympics.

Stoch achieved the unusual feat by taking the gold from 41-year-old Japanese veteran Noriaki Kasai’s in the very last jump during the large hill event at Sochi. Slovenia’s Peter Prevc won the bronze.

Kasai jumped second to last in the final round and had a 133.5 meter jump which earned him a 136.8 for a combined score of 277.4, but he still had to wait for Kamil Stoch to go and decide what color medal he would get.

The Japanese skier was going for his first Olympic medal in seven attempts. He won a team silver medal at the 1994 Lillehammer Games.

When it came time for Kamil Stoch to jump he earned a 132.5 meters which gave him a score of 135.3 for a combined of 278.7 and his second Olympic title this week.

Kamil Stoch joins legendary Simon Ammann (Switzerland) and Matti Nykänen (Finland) as the only men to win both individual ski jumping events at a single Winter Olympics Games.

Ammann achieved the double feat at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games and Vancouver in 2010, while Nykanen did it at Calgary in 1988.

The Pole reached the top of the podium thanks to slightly better style marks than his Japanese rival, despite jumping a meter shorter than Kasai:

“I made such a big mistake… I don’t know how I jumped so far. I was too aggressive. That’s why I flew so far, but hey, what the heck? That’s why I won,” Kamil Stoch told reporters after winning his second gold medal at Sochi.

[Images Via sochi2014.com]

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