Ski jumping at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1970

Ski jumping at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1970 comprised ski jumping events held from 14 to 22 February 1970 at the ski jumping hills in Štrbské Pleso, as part of the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1970 in Vysoké Tatry, Czechoslovakia.

For the third time in championship history, two individual ski jumping competitions were held – one on the normal hill and one on the large hill. Additionally, an unofficial team competition was staged on the final day as an exhibition event.

Gariy Napalkov of the Soviet Union became a double world champion, securing gold medals in both individual events. This marked the second instance in history where a single athlete won both ski jumping competitions at the same world championships. Silver medals were awarded to Yukio Kasaya on the normal hill and Jiří Raška on the large hill, while bronze medals went to Lars Grini on the normal hill and Stanisław Gąsienica Daniel on the large hill.

The 1970 ski jumping events were the 18th edition of the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, and the third time (following 1925 and 1935) the championships were hosted in Czechoslovakia.

Czechoslovakia hosted the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships for the third time, with the event returning to Vysoké Tatry for the second time since 1935.^[1] The ski jumping hill used in 1935, Jarolímek, was demolished in 1962.^[2] A new ski jumping complex, named MS 1970, was constructed in Štrbské Pleso between 1968 and 1969 specifically for the championships.^[3][4] Cross-country trails were modernized, and surrounding infrastructure was rebuilt.^[5] The rack railway was upgraded and electrified, replacing the previous steam railway.^[6] These improvements made Vysoké Tatry the most modern skiing center in Central Europe at the time.^[5]

The organizing committee was chaired by Jozef Lukáč, with Ladislav Harvan as vice-chairman.^[7] The technical delegate for ski jumping events from the International Ski Federation was Anatoliy Akientyev.^[8] Notable attendees included Czechoslovak President Ludvík Svoboda, Prime Minister Lubomír Štrougal, Communist Party leader Gustáv Husák, and International Ski Federation President Marc Hodler.^[4]

At the previous 1966 championships in Oslo, Bjørn Wirkola won both the normal and large hill events, the first time a single skier achieved this feat at one championship.^[1] In the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, Jiří Raška won the normal hill, and Vladimir Belousov won the large hill.^[9]

The 18th Four Hills Tournament (1969/1970) saw victories by Gariy Napalkov in Oberstdorf,^[10] Jiří Raška in Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Bischofshofen,^[11][12] and Bjørn Wirkola in Innsbruck.^[13] Despite no individual wins, Horst Queck won the overall tournament, edging out Wirkola by 2.8 points.^[14]

Queck also dominated the sixth Friendship Cup in ski jumping, winning all three events in Oberhof,^[15] Klingenthal,^[16] and Brotterode.^[17]

On 1 February 1970, the European Junior Ski Championships 1970 in Gosau saw Bernd Eckstein win gold, Odd Grette silver, and Bernd Hoddow bronze. Gyula Molnár, who placed sixth, also competed in Vysoké Tatry.^[18][19][20]

Leading up to the championships, favorites included Soviet skiers Vladimir Belousov and Gariy Napalkov, East German Horst Queck, Norwegian Bjørn Wirkola, and Czechoslovak Jiří Raška.^[21][22]

Competitors performed three jumps: one practice and two competitive jumps.^[22] Five FIS-appointed judges evaluated each competitive jump, awarding up to 20 points for style (flight and landing).^[23][24] The total score included points for distance, calculated relative to the construction point, and style, based on the three median judges' scores (excluding the highest and lowest).^[25]

The ski jumping hills in Štrbské Pleso, built specifically for the championships, were named MS 1970.^[3] The large hill had a construction point at 90 meters, and the normal hill at 70 meters.^[26]

Image	Hill name	Location	Construction point	Hill record
	MS 1970 A	Štrbské Pleso	K-90[26]	95.0 m[2]	Josef Kraus	1969
	MS 1970 B		K-70[26]	No data

The championships opened with a ceremony where Jiří Raška took the athletes' oath on behalf of competitors.^[22] The normal hill competition, the first event of the championships, began with a practice round at 1:00 PM on 14 February 1970, an hour after the opening ceremony.^[21][27]

67 athletes were registered, with 66 competing. In the first competitive round, 12 skiers reached or exceeded 80 meters, with Lars Grini (81.0 m) the first to do so and Yukio Kasaya achieving the longest jump at 84.5 m. Kasaya led after the first round, followed by Vladimir Belousov, who jumped 81.5 m but earned higher style scores, and Karl-Erik Johansson (84.0 m). Medal favorite Horst Queck fell during his 80.5 m jump, receiving low style scores (7 and 10 points),^[23] which dropped him to 30th place.^[22]

In the second round, six skiers reached or surpassed 80 meters. Gariy Napalkov, 10th after the first round, jumped 84.0 m to win gold. Other notable jumps included Josef Matouš (82.5 m), Lars Grini (81.5 m), Jo Inge Bjørnebye (81.0 m), Horst Queck (81.0 m), and Josef Zehnder (80.0 m). Kasaya's 79.0 m jump secured silver, overtaking Belousov, while Grini's performance earned bronze.^[19][22][23]

The large hill competition on 21 February 1970 involved 68 competitors. 19 skiers reached or exceeded the 90-meter construction point in the first round, with Jürgen Dommerich (91.0 m) the first to do so. Ernst Kröll and Karl-Erik Johansson jumped 95.0 m, but Tadeusz Pawlusiak (94.5 m) and Karel Kodejška (93.0 m) led due to higher style scores. Napalkov was 13th after a 91.0 m jump.^[20][24][28]

Before the second round, the jury raised the starting gate, resulting in longer jumps: 51 skiers reached at least 90 meters, and 13 hit 100 meters or more. Napalkov and Ingolf Mork both jumped 109.5 m, setting a new hill record for MS 1970 A, though Mork fell. Napalkov's jump secured gold. Heinz Schmidt (104.0 m) and Hans Schmid (102.0 m) followed in distance. Jiří Raška (99.0 m) won silver, and Stanisław Gąsienica Daniel (100.5 m) took bronze.^[20][24] Pawlusiak, leading after the first round, fell after a 100.5 m jump, dropping to 34th.^[28][29]

Approximately 140,000 spectators attended the ski jumping events.^[2]

Excluding Olympic results counted as "dual championships", Napalkov became the first Soviet skier to win a world championship in ski jumping and the second, after Bjørn Wirkola, to win both events at one championship. Raška's silver was Czechoslovakia's first world championship medal since 1933 (Rudolf Burkert's silver in Innsbruck), and Gąsienica Daniel's bronze was Poland's first since 1962 (Antoni Łaciak's silver in Zakopane).^[30][31]

On the final day of the World Championships, 22 February 1970,^[32] a team competition was held with the participation of 18 teams.^[33] However, the team event was not included in the official championship schedule and was only held as a demonstration competition.^[34] The winners were the representatives of Czechoslovakia, followed by East Germany in second place, the Soviet Union in third, Japan in fourth, Poland in fifth, and Norway in sixth.^[32]

18 of the 25 participating nations in the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1970 fielded ski jumping teams in Štrbské Pleso.^[35]

Athlete	Date of birth	1966 World Championships		1968 Winter Olympics		1970 World Championships		Source
		Normal hill[36]	Large hill[37]	Normal hill[38]	Large hill[39]	Normal hill	Large hill
Austria
Reinhold Bachler	26 December 1944	12	19	2	6	37	9	[19][20]
Ernst Kröll	8 November 1948	–	–	–	–	17	4
Sepp Lichtenegger	13 November 1937	37	24	29	28	29	40
Max Golser	4 May 1940	19	21	36	22	45	36
Canada
Ulf Kvendbo	11 April 1948	61	56	53	55	62	55	[19][20]
John McInnes	7 July 1939	56	47	55	57	59	60
Patrick Morris	Unknown	–	–	–	–	58	63
Zdenek Mezl	13 July 1948	–	–	–	–	65	68
Czechoslovakia
Rudolf Höhnl	21 April 1946	–	40	–	12	4	20	[19][20]
Karel Kodejška	20 March 1947	–	–	–	–	20	8
Josef Matouš	6 January 1942	12	41	–	–	48	13
Jiří Raška	4 February 1941	4	4	1	2	8	2
East Germany
Jürgen Dommerich	6 November 1948	–	–	–	–	18	19	[19][20]
Horst Queck	5 October 1943	7	44	–	–	30	17
Rainer Schmidt	1 August 1948	–	–	–	–	20	28
Heinz Schmidt	Unknown	–	–	–	–	–	24
Bernd Willomitzer	1949	–	–	–	–	31	–
Finland
Raimo Ekholm	31 July 1946	–	–	–	–	32	15	[19][20]
Tauno Käyhkö	6 May 1950	–	–	–	–	14	4
Topi Mattila	29 March 1946	25	31	5	49	38	29
Esko Rautionaho	23 September 1950	–	–	–	–	57	33
France
Maurice Arbez	22 September 1944	55	59	41	50	55	66	[19][20]
Jacques Gaillard	16 August 1950	–	–	–	–	–	65
Alain Macle	18 April 1944	47	57	18	17	DNS	–
Gilbert Poirot	21 September 1944	50	32	10	10	26	37
Yvan Richard	11 December 1950	–	–	–	–	–	62
James Yerly	19 November 1949	–	–	–	–	66	–
Hungary
Mihály Gellér	5 August 1947	–	–	58	56	43	35	[19][20]
László Gellér	5 August 1944	48	50	34	19	–	51
Gyula Molnár	1952	–	–	–	–	61	52
Italy
Giacomo Aimoni	23 December 1939	30	39	25	16	52	41	[19][20]
Albino Bazzana	26 April 1942	–	–	–	–	52	38
Mario Cecon	Unknown	49	48	–	–	51	58
Japan
Seiji Aochi	21 June 1942	–	–	–	26	7	44	[19][20]
Takashi Fujisawa	7 February 1943	16	2	26	18	15	6
Yukio Kasaya	17 August 1943	17	28	23	20	2	32
Hisayothi Sawada	2 December 1947	51	36	–	–	40	42
Norway
Jo Inge Bjørnebye	31 October 1946	–	–	31	–	11	7	[19][20]
Lars Grini	29 June 1944	–	–	13	3	3	11
Ingolf Mork	4 June 1947	–	–	–	–	9	25
Bjørn Wirkola	4 August 1943	1	1	4	23	13	27
Poland
Jan Bieniek	1947	–	–	–	–	–	–	[40]
Stanisław Gąsienica Daniel	6 March 1951	–	–	–	–	33	3
Józef Kocyan	14 February 1946	37	–	35	45	–	57
Adam Krzysztofiak	21 January 1951	–	–	–	–	41	–
Tadeusz Pawlusiak	9 August 1946	–	–	–	–	12	34
Józef Przybyła	29 January 1945	13	30	27	14	39	34
Romania
Anghel Biris	Unknown	–	–	–	–	63	61	[19][20]
Dumitru Lupu	Unknown	–	–	–	–	64	67
Soviet Union
Vladimir Belousov	14 July 1946	–	–	8	1	6	18	[21]
Aleksandr Ivannikov	23 January 1945	10	15	–	–	34	–
Gariy Napalkov	27 June 1948	–	–	14	11	1	1
Koba Zakadze	15 June 1934	–	6	–	–	22	22
Anatoly Zheglanov	14 May 1946	–	–	6	8	–	12
Sweden
Eilert Mähler	1950	–	–	–	–	23	45	[19][20]
Karl-Erik Johansson	Unknown	–	–	–	–	5	20
Tommy Karlsson	Unknown	–	–	–	–	46	31
Lars Ström	Unknown	–	–	–	–	47	49
Switzerland
Richard Pfiffner	Unknown	57	46	–	–	49	46	[19][20]
Hans Schmid	24 June 1948	–	–	–	–	16	10
Walter Steiner	15 February 1951	–	–	–	–	28	23
Josef Zehnder	25 March 1944	34	27	52	47	10	14
United States
Bill Bakke	20 November 1946	–	–	40	34	35	54	[19][20]
Jerry Martin	18 August 1950	–	–	–	–	44	48
Greg Swor	19 April 1951	–	–	–	–	24	27
Adrian Watt	29 December 1947	–	–	44	–	25	53
Yugoslavia
Branko Dolhar	2 February 1949	–	–	–	–	60	–	[19][20]
Janez Jurman	10 June 1946	–	–	–	–	56	–
Marjan Mesec	14 August 1947	–	–	38	–	–	59
Drago Pudgar	27 September 1949	–	–	–	–	–	47
Peter Štefančič	3 March 1947	–	–	–	38	36	43
Ludvik Zajc	21 January 1943	40	42	14	9	19	15
West Germany
Günther Göllner	21 June 1941	29	–	10	29	42	50	[19][20]
Alfred Grosche	20 January 1950	–	–	–	–	54	56
Heinz Ihle	24 April 1941	–	–	22	46	27	29
Sepp Schwinghammer	21 September 1950	–	–	–	–	50	64