Ski Jumping Rules, Scoring & Competition Format — A Complete Guide

The basics

Distance points + style points. Five judges score each jump for form, landing, and flight. The highest and lowest scores are dropped. Distance is measured to the half-meter. Two rounds; combined score wins.

Flying Off the Edge: How Ski Jumping Rules Work at the Winter Olympics

Ski jumping distills winter sport to its most elemental thrill: a human being launches off the edge of a mountain at 90 km/h and flies. The distances are staggering — top jumpers soar well beyond 130 meters on a large hill — and the rules, governed by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS), must balance rewarding length with ensuring safe, stylish, and fair competition.

Olympic Events

Ski jumping at the Winter Games features five events:

  • Men’s Normal Hill (individual) — hill size (HS) 105–110 meters.
  • Men’s Large Hill (individual) — HS 130–140 meters.
  • Men’s Team Large Hill — four jumpers per team, each jumping twice.
  • Women’s Normal Hill (individual) — added at Sochi 2014.
  • Mixed Team — introduced at Beijing 2022, with two women and two men per team.

Scoring: Distance + Style + Compensation

Every jump is scored across three components:

1. Distance Points The hill has a K-point (construction point) — the target distance. Landing exactly on the K-point earns 60 distance points (normal hill) or 120 points (large hill). Every meter beyond the K-point adds points (e.g., 2.0 points per meter on a large hill); every meter short subtracts the same amount.

2. Style Points Five judges each award 0 to 20 points for style, evaluating the in-run position, flight posture, and especially the landing (the telemark landing, with one foot ahead of the other, is the gold standard). The highest and lowest style marks are dropped, and the remaining three are summed. Maximum style points: 60.

3. Wind and Gate Compensation Wind dramatically affects ski jumping distance. A headwind provides lift, extending the jump; a tailwind pushes the jumper down. To account for this, FIS introduced wind compensation points: athletes who jump in tailwind conditions receive bonus points, while those benefiting from headwind have points deducted.

Similarly, gate compensation adjusts for different in-run starting positions. If officials lower the gate (shorter in-run) due to dangerous conditions, jumpers starting from the lower gate receive compensation points. If the gate is raised, points are subtracted.

Ryōyū Kobayashi of Japan won the Beijing 2022 normal hill with 275.0 total points (two jumps combined) — his distance, style, and compensation factors all played a role.

The Telemark Landing

A proper telemark — landing with knees bent, one foot forward, arms spread wide — is essential for high style marks. Landing with feet parallel (a “two-footed” landing) or off-balance costs significant style points. Touching the snow with a hand during landing is a major deduction. Falling is catastrophic for the score: judges typically award 3–6 points (out of 20) for a jump that ends in a fall, regardless of distance.

The V-Style and Flight Technique

Modern ski jumpers use the V-style — skis spread in a V formation during flight — which provides greater aerodynamic lift than the old parallel-ski technique. Body position during flight (forward lean, arm placement, ski angle) is judged under style. The transition from takeoff to V-position must be smooth and immediate; a late spread is penalized.

Equipment Regulations

FIS regulates jumping suits, which must not exceed certain air permeability limits (to prevent “wing-suit” effects). Ski length is proportional to body weight and height — a formula that prevents underweight athletes from gaining an aerodynamic advantage with overly long skis. This rule was introduced partly in response to eating disorder concerns in the sport.

Competition Format

Individual events consist of two rounds. After Round 1, the top 30 jumpers advance to Round 2 (top 50 on large hill in some formats). The start order in Round 2 is the reverse of Round 1 standings. Both round scores are added for the final total.

Team events: each of the four jumpers takes two jumps. All eight jump scores are summed for the team total.

Trial Rounds and Course Setting

Before the competition, trial rounds and official training jumps help athletes and officials gauge conditions. The jury can adjust the gate position between rounds based on wind and safety assessments.

Rules topics

Common confusion

Why do jumpers spread their skis in a V shape during flight?
The V-style, pioneered by Jan Boklöv in the late 1980s, creates more aerodynamic lift than holding skis parallel. The V-shape acts like a wing, generating lift under the body and allowing longer flights. It was initially mocked and penalized by judges, but became universal once its distance advantage became undeniable. Today, every competitive jumper uses the V-style.
What is wind compensation and why does it exist?
Wind drastically affects jump distance: headwind gives lift (longer jumps), tailwind pushes down (shorter jumps). To prevent medal outcomes from being determined by which athlete got lucky with the wind, FIS measures wind speed during each jump and adds or subtracts compensation points. An athlete who jumps in a tailwind receives bonus points; one who benefits from headwind has points deducted.
Why is the telemark landing so important?
The telemark — one foot forward, one back, knees bent, arms wide — is the traditional safe landing position in ski jumping and the standard for style judging. Each of the five judges awards up to 20 points for style, and the landing is the most heavily weighted component. A two-footed landing or a fall can cost 5–15 style points, easily outweighing a few extra meters of distance.
How does ski length relate to body weight?
FIS uses a formula linking maximum ski length to the athlete's Body Mass Index (BMI). Lighter athletes get shorter skis. This rule prevents athletes from dangerously losing weight to gain a favorable lift-to-weight ratio with longer skis. The rule was introduced in the early 2000s after health concerns about underweight jumpers — particularly junior athletes — became a serious issue.
What happens if a jumper lands beyond the hill's safe limit?
Each hill has a 'hill size' (HS) line beyond the K-point, representing the safe landing limit. If officials judge that conditions might cause jumpers to exceed this distance, they lower the starting gate (shorter in-run = slower speed = shorter jump). If a jumper lands dangerously far, competition can be paused while the gate is adjusted. Landing beyond the HS line is not penalized per se, but it's rare and potentially dangerous.
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