Olympic Men’s normal hill individual final medal results, highlights and more
By Zach Bigalke
Defending Olympic champion Kamil Stoch missed the podium, as Germany’s Andreas Wellinger claimed the gold on the normal hill in Pyeongchang.
Ski jumping handed out its first medals of the 2018 Winter Olympics with the completion of the men’s normal hill competition in Pyeongchang. After several qualifying rounds, 10 ski jumpers remained for the shot at the gold. They got their chance in prime time in South Korea. For ski jumping fans in North America willing to wake up early on a Saturday afternoon, the action offered a chance to see a major upset.
Entering the final round, Poland’s Kamil Stoch was the odds-on favorite to successfully defend his gold medal from Sochi. Instead, Stoch never managed to pull away from the rest of the field. A short second jump forced Stoch to watch as a pair of Norwegians pipped him for a spot on the podium.
MEDAL RESULT | Ski Jumping: Men's individual normal hill
Andreas Wellinger
Johann Andre Forfang
Robert Johansson
Instead of Stoch securing a repeat, it was Germany’s Andreas Wellinger who prevailed as the new Olympic champion. Four years ago in Sochi, Wellinger was an 18-year-old kid in his first Winter Olympics. He managed a sixth-place finish in Russia on the normal hill, and has improved with each passing year.
Pyeongchang provided the venue for Wellinger’s breakout performance.
Wellinger, currently third in the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup standings, put everything together at Alpensia Ski Jumping Centre. Seizing the opportunity, he vaulted from fifth place to the top rung of the podium with a huge second jump. Both in distance and in form, that 113.5-meter flight proved to be a gilded performance.
In the end, only Johann Andre Forfang managed to finish within even 10 points of Wellinger’s aggregate score. His compatriot, Robert Johansson, put up a nearly identical jump to Wellinger on his second attempt. As a result, Johansson swooped onto the podium and squeezed out Stoch for the bronze.
Both Wellinger and Forfang are only 22 years old, setting up a budding rivalry and a changing of the guard. The German and the Norwegian will probably be battling for World Cup podiums and world titles all the way into Beijing 2022 and beyond.
On the other hand, Stoch needs to shake off the disappointment quickly. For the 30-year-old star, Pyeongchang is probably his final Winter Olympics. Stoch has one more chance at gold as he turns his attention to defending his large hill Olympic title on February 17.
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