ODDS and EVENS | Ryoyu Kobayashi Aims to Excel at the 2026 Olympics

In Italy, ski jumper Ryoyu Kobayashi will return to Olympic competition with lofty ambitions after a dynamic display of his aerial talents four years ago.

He was the only man to earn a pair of ski jumping medals from individual competitions at the 2022 Beijing Games.

The Iwate Prefecture native was the Olympic men's normal hill gold medalist in China, leading all participants with a jump of 104.5 meters in the first round of the final. That put him on the path to becoming Japan's first gold medalist in Olympic ski jumping since Yukio Kasaya triumphed in the same event at the 1972 Sapporo Games.

Also in China, Kobayashi was the runner-up in the large hill competition.

During a news conference at The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan (FCCJ) on Monday, January 19, Kobayashi outlined his goals for the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics. He also shared his perspective on his mental approach to the high-flying sport, among other insights.

And now he's just two weeks away from his third Olympic Games.

The men's normal hill final is set to begin around 8 PM on February 9 (4 AM JST on February 10) at Predazzo Ski Jumping Stadium. On the evening of February 14 (starting time 4 AM JST the next day), the large hill champion will be crowned.

"Ski jumping is a tough sport," Kobayashi, 29, told the FCCJ. "There are ups and downs. It's contingent on various conditions, [and] it's difficult to win on points. So instead of aiming for that, my goal is to show a big flight, fly big, and also to build excitement at the venue and the medal will follow. … That's the sentiment that I have going towards the Olympics."

Nervous on Top of the Hill

Kobayashi, who is second in the 2025-26 FIS Ski Jumping World Cup standings with 947 points (trailing only Slovenia's Domen Prevc), also spoke about precise technical aspects of his chosen sport.

"When I'm at the starting position, the starting point, I am very nervous, and I don't think about the wind very much," he told the news conference. "But I try to envision a good start, a good performance for me."

How did Kobayashi develop the mental strength to participate in a sport that many would be fearful of trying?

"From the time I was very young, I made sure to jump by making small bumps on a snow hill and then gradually increasing the height of the bump to 20 meters, 40 meters, 50 meters to increase the height of the jump hill or ramp," Kobayashi explained. "And gradually I got used to it, and that's how I did it."

*Ryoyu Kobayashi attends a news conference at The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan in Tokyo on January 19, 2026. (©JAPAN Forward by ED ODEVEN)*

Success in Ski Jumping

In the final Ski Jumping World Cup event before February's Olympics, Kobayashi placed second behind Prevc on January 18. A day earlier at the same venue (Sapporo's Okurayama Ski Jump Stadium), Prevc also finished first, with Japan's Naoki Nakamura, Ren Nikaido and Kobayashi placing second, third and fifth, respectively.

Nikaido, 24, is third in points (764) in the World Cup standings. And with a win, two second-place finishes, and a pair of third-place finishes in the current World Cup campaign, he's emerged as a potential medal hopeful for the upcoming Milan Cortina Games.

Asked about other medal contenders set to compete at the 2026 Olympics, Kobayashi declared that he doesn't dwell on other ski jumping rivals.

"My biggest rival is myself," said Kobayashi, who had a career-high 13 victories in the 2018-19 Ski Jumping World Cup season. "[And] my own performance, or performance exceeding that; if I'm able to do that, there's a greater chance for a medal."

He continued: "I will not be considering the wind or any other external environment [and] strictly focusing on my own performance."

Anatomy of a World-Class Ski Jumper

Near the midway point of the press event, Ryoyu Kobayashi was asked what he thinks are the key factors that have led to his success as a ski jumper.

In his detailed response, Kobayashi highlighted the importance of practice. But, he added, rigorous practice alone won't lead to victories.

What else is needed?

"It's about imaging (visualization), it's about adapting yourself to equipment, and having the physical fitness to fight through a whole season, creating the right conditions," Kobayashi commented.

He pointed out that talent isn't the most vital factor and cited experience from earlier in his career about the importance of consistency. "What I learned through two seasons of the World Cup, just to be in the top 10 one time, it was a lot of learning," Kobayashi recalled.

Advice from Ryoyu Kobayashi

In a sport defined by majestic flights through the air, Kobayashi is one of the top ski jumpers of the 21st century.

Heading into the Ski Jumping World Cup season break before the 2026 Olympics, he sits sixth on the all-time wins list (37). Austrian Gregor Schlierenzauer, who retired in 2021, is No 1 with 53 wins.

So what advice would Kobayashi give to somebody who wanted to become a competitive ski jumper?

"Diet to training to the daily routine of everyday life is directly connected to the competition," said Kobayashi, whose YouTube channel has more than 71,000 subscribers. "But I would not advise anyone to push oneself too much, but to live to jump."

Pressure During a Competition

As noted above, Ryoyu Kobayashi says that he channels his energy into focusing on himself and competing against his own high standards.

That said, during a major competition, such as the Olympics or a Ski Jumping World Cup meet, how does he handle the pressure in pursuit of victory?

In short, it's a combination of fighting spirit and competitive energy.

"The biggest pressure I feel is when I'm about to do my second jump and I come out [first] after the first jump and just before the second jump," he told the FCCJ audience. "So I try to be mindful of performing well. That's the mindset. And just before the second jump, if I hear that the jumpers who are ranked second and third [after] the first jump flew longer and there was a lot of applause, that's when I feel nervous and excited at the same time."

Before the press conference wrapped up, a reporter asked Kobayashi if there's anything in particular he does during a pre-competition routine for good luck.

"Not so much, because if I have something like that and I can't do it, then there'll be confusion on my part," Kobayashi said. "So I only have warm-up routines. That's about it."

What's worked routine-wise for Kobayashi for many years has contributed to his success on the global stage. His Olympic gold in 2022, preceded by Kasaya's in 1972 and Kazuyoshi Funaki's silver (normal hill), and double-gold glory (large hill, team event) at the 1998 Nagano Games, are among Japan's iconic feats in the sport.

At Italy's Winter Olympics, Kobayashi could very well author another chapter in Japan's ski jumping success story.

Author: Ed Odeven

Follow Ed's [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and he can be found on X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.