Ski flying
F sharp: Kobayashi’s 291 meter flight not a world record
Ryoyu Kobayashi jumped 291 meters in Iceland. photo
© Geir Olsen/NTB/dpa
The World Ski Association confirms Ryoyu Kobayashi’s spectacular 291-meter flight. But it takes more to set a world record.
Japan’s world-class athlete Ryoyu Kobayashi has also officially achieved the longest flight in the history of ski jumping.
As the World Ski Federation FIS confirmed, the 27-year-old landed on a specially built jump in the Icelandic ski resort of Hlidarfjall at 291 meters. However, the sensational distance is not considered a world record due to the irregular conditions. The Polish portal “skijumping.pl” had previously reported on the PR campaign by Kobayashi’s main sponsor Red Bull.
The current world record holders in ski flying are still Silje Opseth from Norway with 230.5 meters for women and the Austrian Stefan Kraft with 253.5 meters for men. World record attempts are usually only recognized in World Cup competitions. The world association pointed out, among other things, that the jumpers’ material must be checked by an inspector certified by the Fis.
Kobayashi had originally aimed for 300 meters, the Fis statement said. The temporary ski jump was hermetically sealed during the spectacle and will now be dismantled immediately.