The 1998 Zakopane Ski Jumping World Cup was a series of ski jumping competitions held as part of the 1997–98 FIS Ski Jumping World Cup from 16 to 18 January 1998 at Wielka Krokiew in Zakopane, Poland.

Two individual competitions were contested on the large hill. This marked the fourth time that ski jumpers competed in Zakopane for World Cup points. These were the 13th and 14th competitions of the 1997/1998 World Cup season.

In the first competition at Wielka Krokiew, Kristian Brenden emerged victorious. In the second, Primož Peterka proved to be the best athlete. For the representative of Slovenia, this was his second career World Cup win in Zakopane.

Second places were secured by Janne Ahonen (first competition) and Kazuyoshi Funaki (second competition). Sven Hannawald took third place in both events.

This was the second time, after the 1996 event, that two individual large hill competitions were held in Zakopane as part of the Ski Jumping World Cup in Zakopane. In 1980, one competition was held on the normal hill and one on the large hill, while in 1990, a single competition took place on the large hill.

A total of 82 athletes from 16 national teams were registered for the competitions. The oldest participant was Japan's Masahiko Harada (29 years and 252 days), while the youngest was Poland's (15 years and 272 days).

Pre-event context

Before the Zakopane events, 12 individual competitions had been held in the 1997/1998 World Cup season. The World Cup standings were led by Masahiko Harada with 729 points, 111 points ahead of second-placed Dieter Thoma. Kazuyoshi Funaki held third place with 584 points. In the Nations Cup, Japan led, followed by Germany and Finland, tied for second place.

Prior to Zakopane, World Cup victories in the season were claimed by: Masahiko Harada (four times), Kazuyoshi Funaki (three times), Jani Soininen (twice), and Sven Hannawald, Dieter Thoma, and Andreas Widhölzl (once each).

From 29 December 1997 to 6 January 1998, the 46th Four Hills Tournament was held. It was won by Kazuyoshi Funaki, who triumphed in the first three competitions in Oberstdorf, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and Innsbruck. Funaki had the chance to become the first ski jumper to win all four competitions in a single Four Hills Tournament edition, but he finished eighth in the final competition in Bischofshofen, where Sven Hannawald took the victory. The top three in the 46th Four Hills Tournament were Kazuyoshi Funaki, Sven Hannawald, and Janne Ahonen.

In the last World Cup competitions before Zakopane, held in Ramsau on 11 January, Japanese athletes dominated. Masahiko Harada won, followed by Kazuyoshi Funaki and Hiroya Saitō. Andreas Widhölzl placed fourth, while and Kenji Suda tied for fifth. Notably, Janne Ahonen, Hansjörg Jäkle, Sven Hannawald, Primož Peterka, and Jaroslav Sakala – all from the top 15 in the World Cup standings – did not compete in Ramsau.

World Cup standings before Zakopane World Cup standings before Zakopane competitionsRankAthleteCountryPointsDeficit to leader1.Japan729–2. Germany6181113. Japan5841454. Finland5571725. Austria4512786. Slovenia4332967. Japan4143158. Finland3733569. Germany32840110. Austria31640311. Japan30542412. Germany24148813. Czech Republic22850114. Austria21851115. Austria21151816. Finland19053917. Norway17855118. Germany17655319. Japan16756220. Finland16456521. Finland15457522. Austria14758223. Switzerland8864123. Austria8864125. Norway8764226. Japan7865127. Japan7665328. Norway6766229. Germany6566430. Czech Republic6466531. Germany6266732. Japan6066933. Norway5467534. Russia5067935. France4668336. Austria4468537. Finland4368638. Japan4168839. Norway4068940. Czech Republic3869140. Norway3869142. Poland3369642. Norway3369644. Poland3269745. Czech Republic2870146. Switzerland2670347. Italy2570447. Slovenia2570449. Finland2370650. France2070951. Germany1671351. Switzerland1671353. Poland1571454. Slovenia1371655. Czech Republic1271756. Slovenia1071956. Norway1071958. Norway972059. Finland872160. South Korea672361. Norway472561. Austria472561. Germany472564. United States372664. France372666. Germany272766. Belarus2727

Event organization

The organizers prepared 40,000 ticketed seats in the stands for both competitions. Tickets were sold at prices of 2 PLN (concession) and 5 PLN (standard).

A lack of sufficient snow posed challenges for the organizers. However, sub-zero temperatures allowed the use of snow cannons, and snow was also transported from the Morskie Oko area.

In addition to the World Cup events, a ceremony for the Olympic oath of Polish ski jumping representatives for the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano was planned in Zakopane. The ceremony took place on 17 January, following the first competition. The oath was taken by Krystian Długopolski, Łukasz Kruczek, Adam Małysz, Robert Mateja, and Wojciech Skupień.

Event schedule The first official training session took place on 16 January 1998, with the second individual competition concluding the event two days later. The schedule included two individual competitions, two qualifying rounds, and three official training sessions.

Date Time Event 16 January 1998 1:00 PM Official training on K-116 hill (3 series) 17 January 1998 10:00 AM Qualifying round for the individual competition on K-116 hill 1:00 PM Start of the first round of the individual competition on K-116 hill,second round of the individual competition 18 January 1998 10:00 AM Qualifying round for the individual competition on K-116 hill 1:00 PM Start of the first round of the individual competition on K-116 hill,second round of the individual competition

Venue The 1998 Zakopane World Cup competitions were held at Wielka Krokiew named after Stanisław Marusarz, located on the northern slope of Krokiew in the Western Tatras. Two individual competitions took place at the venue. Wielka Krokiew had previously hosted World Cup events in 1980, 1990, and 1996, with competitions planned for 1981 but canceled.

Venue Location K-point Venue record Wielka Krokiew Zakopane K-116 130.0 m Primož Peterka 27 January 1996

Competition overview Training sessions (16 January 1998)

The first training session began on Friday, 16 January, at 1:00 PM. It was repeatedly interrupted due to the foehn wind. The starting gate was lowered three times. Ultimately, after 68 jumpers completed their attempts, the training was canceled, and the remaining sessions were not held. Among those who jumped, Henning Stensrud achieved the longest distance of 129 m. Toni Nieminen jumped 112 m, and Wojciech Skupień reached 110.5 m. The session was canceled before Andreas Goldberger could attempt his jump. Earlier, Dieter Thoma had withdrawn from the training.

Qualification for the first individual competition (17 January 1998)

The qualifying round began on 17 January 1998 at 10:00 AM, as the wind subsided. The qualification took place in favorable weather conditions and was won by Kazuyoshi Funaki, who jumped 119 m. The World Cup runner-up, Dieter Thoma, landed 2.5 m farther but received 5 points lower for style, losing to Funaki by 0.5 points. Third was Martin Schmitt, the best among those fighting for qualification, also jumping 119 m. Fourth was Kristian Brenden, who jumped 120.5 m, making him, alongside Thoma, the only jumper to exceed 120 m.

A total of 80 athletes from 16 countries participated in the qualifications.

First individual competition (17 January 1998)

The first individual competition began on 17 January at 1:00 PM. Thirty minutes before the start, light rain began to fall. The competition opened with Switzerland's Marco Steinauer, who jumped 95 m. The next jumper, , landed 6 m farther, taking the lead. The fifth jumper, Roland Audenrieth, jumped 105.5 m and assumed the lead. He held it despite attempts by others, including Wojciech Skupień, who jumped 99.5 m and was third. As the competition progressed, rain intensified, worsening conditions on the takeoff.

Audenrieth remained in the lead until the 20th jumper, Robert Mateja, who jumped 106.5 m, surpassing him by 7.3 points. Adam Małysz, jumping next, landed at 94.5 m, placing lower. Kristian Brenden jumped 99 m, taking fifth place. Increasing rain led to shorter jumps by subsequent competitors. The 35th jumper, Henning Stensrud, landed at 109 m, becoming the new leader. The 1996 Zakopane World Cup winner, Andreas Goldberger, managed only 88.5 m.

Before the top 10 World Cup athletes jumped, hail began to fall. The final 10 started with Stefan Horngacher at 83 m. Sven Hannawald and Janne Ahonen jumped 97 m and 98 m, respectively, placing in the top ranks. Hiroya Saitō reached 95.5 m, while defending World Cup champion Primož Peterka and Andreas Widhölzl both hit 94 m. Finland's Jani Soininen jumped 89 m, Four Hills Tournament winner Kazuyoshi Funaki 87 m, Dieter Thoma 86.5 m, and World Cup leader Masahiko Harada 96.5 m. Thoma, Funaki, Soininen, Horngacher, and Goldberger failed to advance to the final round. After the first round, Henning Stensrud led, followed by Robert Mateja, Roland Audenrieth, Roland Wakolm, Wojciech Skupień, and Kristian Brenden.

Before the final round, the hail turned to sleet, and the jury extended the takeoff by two meters. The second round began with Kazuya Yoshioka jumping 88.5 m. The lead changed after Hansjörg Jäkle jumped 97 m. Jäkle held the lead until Reinhard Schwarzenberger, 26th after the first round (93 m), jumped 105.5 m, taking an 18.2-point lead. Primož Peterka jumped 97 m, taking second. The lead changed again with Martin Schmitt, who matched Schwarzenberger's distance but led by 2.3 points. Poland's Adam Małysz, 21st after the first round, jumped 92.5 m, placing seventh. Schmitt was overtaken by Andreas Widhölzl, 18th after the first round, who jumped 107 m.

The final 10 opened with Masahiko Harada, who jumped 104 m, placing just behind Widhölzl. Sven Hannawald jumped 108 m, taking the lead. Lasse Ottesen, eighth after the first round, landed at 89 m, losing his top position. Janne Ahonen jumped 107 m, taking the lead by 0.5 points over Kristian Brenden, who also jumped 106 m. Wojciech Skupień, fifth after the first round, jumped 88 m, dropping to the lower ranks. jumped 91 m, also falling out of the top 10. Roland Audenrieth, third after the first round, jumped 93.5 m, finishing ninth. Robert Mateja matched Audenrieth's 93.5 m, securing sixth place. First-round leader Henning Stensrud jumped 87.5 m, finishing 13th.

Thus, the first individual World Cup competition in Zakopane in 1998 was won by Kristian Brenden, the first Norwayn to win a World Cup event at Wielka Krokiew. This was Brenden's second career World Cup victory. Janne Ahonen and Sven Hannawald took the remaining podium places. Fifty athletes from 13 countries competed in the event.

Qualification for the second individual competition (18 January 1998)

On Sunday, 18 January, at 10:00 AM, the qualifying round for the second individual competition in Zakopane began. It concluded with a victory for Sven Hannawald, who jumped 114 m, defeating his compatriot Hansjörg Jäkle (112.5 m) by 3.2 points. Third was Kristian Brenden, the previous day's winner, who jumped 112 m and was the best among those competing for qualification. Unlike Saturday's event, the competition took place in sunny, windless conditions.

Short jumps in the qualifying round were recorded by Primož Peterka (79 m), Dieter Thoma (67 m), and Andreas Widhölzl (61 m), who placed 73rd, 78th, and 79th, respectively. However, their positions in the top 15 of the World Cup standings guaranteed their participation in the main event.

Eighty athletes from 16 countries participated in the qualifications.

Second individual competition (18 January 1998)