Ed Odeven 
Ryoyu Kobayashi competes in an FIS Ski Jumping World Cup large hill event on February 16, 2025, in Sapporo. (©SANKEI)
Ryoyu Kobayashi returned to winning ways on the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup circuit during the weekend of February 14-16.
On Saturday, the reigning Olympic men's normal hill gold medalist, captured his first World Cup win since March 2024. In the 22nd competition of the 2024-25 season, Kobayashi amassed 286.4 points for his two jumps at Sapporo's Okurayama Ski Jump Stadium. His top jump of the day ― made on his first of two attempts ― covered 137 meters.
Austria's Jan Hoerl was the runner-up with 266.7 points and Domen Prevc of Slovenia placed third (266.2 points).
After receiving the winner's trophy on home soil, the 28-year-old Kobayashi said, "I enjoyed competing at home, the atmosphere was very good and I'm very happy to win."
A day later, in the weekend's second large hill competition, Kobayashi soared 132 meters and 137 meters to lock up his second win. He finished atop the standings with 278.4 points, followed by Norway's Marius Lindvik (274.2) and Johann Andre Forfang (268.7).
Ryoyu Kobayashi Moves to 7th on All-Time Wins List
Kobayashi was the 2023-24 FIS Ski Jumping World Cup season runner-up. He claimed his second season title in the 2021-22 campaign.
With back-to-back triumphs in Sapporo, the Iwate Prefecture native is seventh on the all-time World Cup wins list with 34. He moved past German Jens Weissflog on the victory chart with his Sunday triumph.
Retired Austrian standout Gregor Schlierenzauer is No 1 with 53.
After collecting his 34th World Cup win, Kobayashi reacted to his latest ski jumping feat.
"I can't really say anything, I'm so happy," the large hill silver medalist at the 2022 Beijing Olympics told reporters in Sapporo. He then said, "I jumped just how I imagined."
In his amazing 2019-20 season, Kobayashi triumphed in 13 World Cup events and earned his first season title.
Looking Ahead
Ryoyu Kobayashi is 11th in points (566) this season. Norway's Daniel Tschofenig is No 1 (1,606).
Following the weekend events in Sapporo, Kobayashi will shift his focus to getting ready for the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, which will be held February 27-March 8 in Trondheim, Norway.
"Worlds is the only title I haven't won yet, so I'm really looking forward to it," Kobayashi said, according to NHK.
The ongoing FIS Ski Jumping World Cup season continues on March 13 in Oslo after the world championships.
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Author: Ed Odeven
Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.
