Kobayashi first Japanese opening Four Hills winner in 21 years

Ryoyu Kobayashi became the first Japanese man in more than 20 years to win the opening leg of the Four Hills jumping competition in Oberstdorf, Germany on Sunday.

He scored a combined 282.3 points after two jumps to beat Germany’s Eisenbacher who finished second on 281.9pts and Austria’s Stefan Kraft in third with 280.5pts.

The 22-year-old is seeking to become the first Japanese Four Hills overall tournament champion since Kazuyoshi Funaki in 1997/1998 who also won in the German Alps 21 years ago.

However, Kobayashi refused to get carried away despite success in front of more than 25,000 spectators in Bavaria. I’m not thinking about the overall title yet, I will take it step by step and now I’m looking forward to jumping in Garmisch-Partenkrichen,” he said. The second of the German legs of the Four Hills takes place in Garmisch- Partenkrichen on Tuesday. The competition then moves to Austria where the jumpers will compete at Innsbruck on January 4 and Bischofshofen two days later.