Ski Jumping

Ski jumping involves performing jumps during a sporting event.  The usual criteria for winning would be the distance covered and points earned during the jump.  This is not exclusively for snow skiing, as you can also use water skiing to indulge in this type of skiing.  So, this is a combination of style, grace and one’s ability to propel himself as far as he can in the air.  Of course, the landing is also an important aspect in ski jumping, as the skier has to make sure that he executes an upright landing.

Ski jumping features a take-off ramp.  The skier goes down the hill, accumulating speed at the descent.  He then uses the take-off ramp to thrust his body onto the air.

As for equipment, skis for ski jumping are generally long and wide.  They do not have solid binders that are used for other types of skiing.  This time, the skis are only attached to the skier’s toes to allow for lightness and increased ability to drive oneself through the air.

The Norwegian who is renowned as the father of ski jumping started this skiing discipline in the 1860’s.  As viewers watched astounded, he was able to soar through the air by jumping over a rock.  He jumped a height of 30 meters without using any ski poles.  This feat became the record to beat for almost three decades.

Another figure that is prominent in the world of ski jumping is Thulin Thams.  During the first winter Olympics, he won a gold medal because of his new technique.  Dubbed the Kongsberger, this technique enabled Thams to jump for over 100 meters.  Eventually, ski jumpers developed a technique of maintaining the shape of a V while soaring through the air.  This same technique won for Andreas Goldberger, an Austrian, the record of become the first person to soar up to 200 meters.  He performed this feat in 1994.

For the Olympic event of Ski Jumping, the boots are the kind that is low cut at the front.  This will enable the skier to lean forward, for as much as he possibly could.  The ski is strictly based on how tall the skier is.  The proportion would be that the ski length should not exceed 146% of the skier’s height, with the binding ensuring that at most 57% of the ski is used as the front section.  There is a cord that connects the ski to the boots, this makes sure that there is minimum wobbling as the skier flies through the air.