Ski Jumping
Ski jumper Ryōyū Kobayashi soars to Four Hills success
Japanese star wins the biggest annual event in men’s ski jumping, the Four Hills Tournament, for the second time, thanks to three victories in four events.
Ryōyū Kobayashi soared to his second Four Hills title, blowing away the competition by winning the first three events of the iconic tournament.
The Japanese star earned his first Four Hills title at the 2018-19 edition when he claimed the coveted Grand Slam by winning all four events at Oberstdorf, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Innsbruck and Bischofshofen.
Kobayashi won his second Four Hills title in impressive fashion
© Jason Halayko/Red Bull Content Pool
Having watched Polish rival Kamil Stock earn his third Four Hills title last season, Kobayashi was determined to come back strong at the first event of this season's edition in Oberstdorf. The 25-year-old did just that as he stormed to victory with an excellent score of 302, edging out Norway's Halvor Egner Granerud and Robert Johansson.
The next stop at Garmisch-Partenkirchen was an altogether more tense affair. Kobayashi won by just 0.2 of a point from German Markus Eisenbichler, with Slovenian Lovro Kos back in third.
With Innsbruck's leg cancelled due to strong winds, Bischofshofen staged the third stop, which saw Kobayashi battle it out with Norwegian Marius Lindvik and Granerud again as he held his nerve to score a 291.3, claiming victory and maintaining his Grand Slam hopes.
The Japanese ace is chasing a second overall world title
© Bor Dobrin/Red Bull Content Pool
Bischofshofen remained the final destination, with Kobayashi's dominance finally coming to an end as Austrian Daniel Huber earned a shock win ahead of Granerud and German Karl Geiger.
Kobayashi finished fifth to ensure that his overall score of 1162 was enough to wrap up his second Four Hills Tournament title. The victory was also enough for the Japanese star to overtake Geiger at the top of the 2021-22 FIS Ski Jumping World Cup standings as he goes in search of a second overall title.