As the world is gearing up for the 2022 Winter Olympics, it looks like we’re in for another exciting year on the ramps. Skiing is one of the biggest and most action-packed sports in the Winter Olympic Games, with stacks of medals up for grabs for the world’s best athletes. Alpine, cross-country and freestyle are all popular skiing disciplines for Sportsbook betting, but ski jumping may be one of the most hair-raising and suspenseful of them all.
Ski jumping is a winter sport in which skiers strive to achieve the longest possible jump after rapidly descending from a uniquely designed ramp. The jump length is not the only element that counts — style, technique and even weather conditions may be taken into account when judges score the participating athletes. Join us as we take a closer look at the sport, the biggest ski jumping events of the year, and which ski jumping betting markets you can expect to see in the coming months!
Ski jumping is a relatively young sport, tracing its origins to the early 19th century. The first recorded ski jump was in 1808 when a Norwegian-Danish military officer Olaf Rye launched himself 9.5m in the air in front of his fellow soldiers near the Eidsberg Church. For Rye, ski jumping was just a passion, but his adventurousness paved the way for ski jumping to become one of the traditional Nordic skiing disciplines.
The first-ever ski jumping competition with prizes was held in 1866, Hoydalsmo, where Sondre Norheim won with a distance of 19.5m. Norheim is regarded as the “father” of modern skiing, for he made significant strides in technological innovation in skiing, designing new equipment and coining new skiing techniques. Ski jumping quickly gained popularity in Norway, with another major competition taking place in 1875 and then again in 1892. Not long before the second iteration of the event, Sondre Norheim and a fellow Nordic skier, Karl Hovelsen, emigrated to the United States, where they got to work on developing the sport further.
The sport was also firmly planting roots in Canadian soil, thanks to another Norwegian immigrant Nels Nelsen. Annual ski jumping competitions were held on Mount Revelstoke, on a hill designed by Nelsen. Revelstoke was the biggest ski jump hill in Canada, internationally recognised as the best in North America. The length of the hill — 600m — made jumps of over 60m possible, and Revelstoke became the only hill in Canada where ski jumping world records were set, in 1916, 1921, 1925, 1932 and again in 1933.
In 1924, ski jumping made its first appearance in the Winter Olympics in Chamonix, France. A decade later, ski jumping branched out into ski flying, beginning in Planica, Slovenia, where Josef Bradl became the first competitor to jump over 100m. The historic, first-ever jump of over 200m was also achieved at this venue by Toni Nieminen in 1994 with a jump of 203m.
Ski jumping has been included at the Winter Olympics since 1924 and the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships since 1925. Women’s participation in the sport saw a very late beginning, with the first events being held in the 1990s. The first women’s Olympic event wasn’t held until 2014 at the Sochi Winter Olympics, where Carina Vogt won the gold medal for Germany, and Austria’s Daniela Iraschko-Stolz took silver.
The ski jumping venue is referred to as a hill, consisting of the in-run (jumping ramp), take-off table and a landing hill. There is a drawn line on the landing area, known as the construction point (K-point), which serves as the target for competitors to reach. Each jump is evaluated according to the distance travelled and the style performed. Some competitions also factor in the in-run and wind conditions when scoring the participants.
There are five ski jumping hills, each of different size and with varied construction points:
Usually, five judges evaluate a competition, each awarding up to 20 points for jumping style based on the steadiness of the skis, balance, body position, and landing execution. The highest and lowest scores are dropped, and the three remaining scores are added to the distance score. The distance score depends on the hill’s K-point, and many competitions will be labelled as such. For example, a K-90 competition is a ski jumping tournament where the construction point is set at 90m. Athletes are awarded 60 points for landing on the K-point on normal and large hills and 120 points on flying hills.
The competitor is awarded extra points for every metre beyond the K-point, depending on the hill they are competing on. The distance is measured between the take-off and the point where the feet make contact with the landing slope. The current world record-holder is Austria’s Stefan Kraft, set for a 253.5m jump in Vikersund, Norway. However, Russia’s Dmitry Vassiliev reached a distance of 254m just two years prior; unfortunately, his jump was disqualified due to a hard crash onto near-flat ground. In 2003, another Austrian — Daniela Iraschko-Stolz — set the world record for women, with a distance of 200m during practice for a World Cup event.
Since the early 20th century, ski jumping has been an integral part of winter sports all over the world. If you’re interested in ski jumping betting, these are the most thrilling events that you should keep an eye out for:
From a betting standpoint, ski jumping can be a challenging sport to wrap your head around. In the individual events, the winner is the jumper with the highest combined score over two jumps; in team events, the winners are determined by combining the scores of each person on the team. Aside from distance jumped, other factors play a significant role in each participant’s score, such as style, technique, and even how the skis balance while airborne!
At LV BET, our players and punters can enjoy competitive ski jumping odds on the most significant ski jumping events of the year, including all tournaments organised by the FIS. The most widespread betting markets across all competitions are outright winner and podium finish; however, you may occasionally find prop bets, like whether or not a specific athlete reaches the K-point.
When it comes to sports betting, ski jumping is a particularly interesting choice. Despite the seemingly straightforward aim of achieving the longest jump, betting on ski jumping can be quite unpredictable. The athletes are evaluated based on a complex scoring system that incorporates distance, style, wind conditions and other factors. Ski jumping is also one of the sports with the fewest number of consecutive winners, so don’t be surprised if you see favourites drastically change from one event to the next.
As fickle as the sport may be, there are a few things you should consider before making your selections.
The LV BET Sportsbook is your one-stop solution for all your betting needs. We offer a large selection of betting markets on the best sporting events around, including the biggest ski jumping tournaments and international competitions. You can dive right into the action and explore our unparalleled variety of popular and unique markets at first-rate odds. Aside from traditional sports, the LV BET Sportsbook also offers comprehensive markets on entertainment events, virtual sports and esports, like Eurovision, Instant Racing and CS:GO. Have a look and enjoy the best of online sports betting!
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