Ski Jumper Nozomi Maruyama Places 3rd in Women's Normal Hill Final

Perseverance has paid off for Nozomi Maruyama.

The 27-year-old collected Japan's first medal of the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics, earning the bronze medal in the women's ski jumping normal hill final.

On Saturday, February 7, the Nara native, competing in her first Olympics, demonstrated the solid form that has helped lead her to six victories in FIS Ski Jumping World Cup events during the 2025-26 season.

Maruyama was consistent in the final round. She flew 97 meters and 100 meters on her two jumps to collect 135.7 points (the third-highest tally in the first round) and then got a score of 126.4 (fourth-highest) in the second round.

Norway's Anna Odine Stroem won the competition, finishing with 267.3 points. She placed 1.1 points ahead of Slovenia's Nika Prevc.

Since she sustained a knee injury that kept her out of the 2022 Beijing Olympics, Maruyama has strived to be ready for another opportunity to participate in the Winter Games.

Satisfaction for Nozomi Maruyama

The 27-year-old was satisfied with her performance in Predazzo, Italy, on the first full day of the 20206 Olympics.

"It has been a really good season," Maruyama told reporters. "I actually proved myself right to the end and to win a bronze medal was really down to the strength of my endurance."

"A lot of people have supported me to help me reach this point, even since before I was injured, and that has resulted in a medal," Maruyama, according to Kyodo News. "I would like to tell each and every one of them how thankful I am."

Also for Japan, Sara Takanashi, competing in her fourth Olympics, placed 13th. Yuka Seto was 14th and Yuki Ito finished 17th.

At the Beijing Games, Japan claimed 18 medals, including three gold. With Nozomi Maruyama placing third at Predazzo Jumping Stadium, Team Japan started anew with its 2026 medal count.

From Disappointment to Happiness

Maruyama reflected on her path to Olympic success after Saturday's competition wrapped up.

"The last four years have been a struggle and I am delighted to win the bronze medal," Maruyama said, according to Kyodo News. "I thought I had a strong second jump."

She added, "I felt the normal hill would be a close contest and that even the slightest miss could change the color of the medals. I am glad I was able to put everything out there today."

For Olympic champion Stroem, Saturday's performance exceeded her expectations.

"Luckily, I managed to do my things well and I suspect Nika didn’t do hers quite as well as she wished, as she's done earlier," Stroem was quoted as saying by The Associated Press. "But I reckon she's going to be hard to beat in the big hill [final on February 15]."

Stroem added, "I didn't jump [in practice] yesterday and I saw Nika was in a league of her own — as she usually is. So I thought we were all competing for silver here."