After the unsuccessful 4-Hills-Tournament, the Japanese team decided to withdraw from the next World Cup competition. It just so happened that the next competition will be held in Zakopane. This decision was met with strong reactions from the Norwegian media.
In the 2022/2023 Ski Jumping World Cup season, the Japanese team is not doing its best. The winner of last year’s 4-Hills-Tournament Ryoyu Kobayashi is only 20th in the overall standings, while his compatriot Naoki Nakamura is only 24th.
World Cup in Zakopane. The Japanese retreated
In the 71st edition of the 4-Hills-Tournament, representatives of the Land of the Rising Sun were also not impressed, because the previously mentioned Kobayashi took only 18th place. As a result, as established by dagbladet.no, the entire Japanese team withdrew from the World Cup competitions in Zakopane. “Shocker. This weekend, the Japanese team refuses to participate in show jumping competitions. The country has reached the bottom,” Norwegian journalists write.
“The Japanese did so badly that they returned to each other to train,” we read on the website.
Noriaki Kasai returns to jumping
Interestingly, at the same time, the Continental Cup competition will be held in Sapporo, where Noriaki Kasai, who will turn 51 on June 6, will perform. The jumping legend last appeared on balance beam in 2020.
Klas Brede Braten, sports director of the Norwegians who played with Kasaim in 1988, commented on this decision in the following words. - Yes, what can I say! A small piece of the history of jumping is being written. I hope he’s in better shape than me. He is a legend in our sport. And because he was a good ski jumper, and because he won a lot, he said.
Kasai has 569 World Cup starts and 17 wins. He has a World Cup gold in ski flying, two Olympic silver medals and two World Cup silver medals.
Source: Wprost
