Ski flying is a winter sport discipline derived from ski jumping, in which much greater distances can be achieved. It is a form of competitive individual Nordic skiing where athletes descend at high speed along a specially designed takeoff ramp using skis only, jump from the end of it with as much power as they can generate, then glide – or 'fly' – as far as possible down a steeply sloped hill, and ultimately land within a target zone in a stable manner. Points are awarded for distance and stylistic merit by five judges. Events are governed by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (Fédération Internationale de Ski et de Snowboard; FIS).
The rules and scoring in ski flying are mostly the same as they are in ski jumping, and events under the discipline are usually contested as part of the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup season, but the hills – of which there are only five remaining, all in Europe – are constructed to different specifications in order to enable jumps of up to 66% longer in distance. There is also a stronger emphasis on aerodynamics and harnessing the wind, as well as an increased element of danger due to athletes flying much higher and faster than in ski jumping.
From its beginnings in the 1930s, ski flying has developed its own distinct history and since given rise to all of the sport's world records. The first hill designed specifically for ski flying was built in Yugoslavia in 1934, after which both Germany and Austria built their own hills in 1950. This was followed by Norway in 1966, the United States in 1970, and Czechoslovakia in 1980. From the 1960s to 1980s, a friendly rivalry between the European venues saw world records being set regularly, together with hill upgrades and evolutions in technique to fly longer distances. The FIS Ski Flying World Championships was first contested in 1972 in Planica.
Ski flying remains at its most popular in Norway and Slovenia,"EBU and FIS extend partnership for Ski Flying World Championships to 2020". FIS. 26 March 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2025. where all world records have been set since 1985.
History 1930s–1940s Breaking the 100 metre barrier and the birth of ski flying
The origins of ski flying can be traced directly to 15 March 1936 in Planica, Slovenia (then a part of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia), when 18-year-old Austrian Josef "Sepp" Bradl became the first man in history to land a ski jump of over . His world record jump of was set at Bloudkova velikanka ("Bloudek giant"), a new hill designed and completed in 1934 by engineers Stanko Bloudek and Ivan Rožman, together with Joso Gorec. A year earlier, Olav Ulland had crossed the 100 m barrier in Ponte di Legno, Italy, but touched the snow with his hands, which rendered his jump – and world record – unofficial."Hall of Famer Olav Ulland dead at 92". International Skiing History Association. Archived from the original on 23 April 2011. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
With jumps now in the triple digits, Bloudek enthused: "That was no longer ski jumping. That was ski flying!"MacArthur, Paul J. (March–April 2011). Skiing Heritage Journal, pp. 20–25, at Google Books. International Skiing History Association. Retrieved 4 November 2025. It was with these words that ski flying took on a life of its own. Such was the awe and disbelief at these massive jumps, the units of measurement were trivialised by the media, who suggested that the metre used in Yugoslavia was shorter than elsewhere in Europe.Stone, Harry (2009). Ski Joy: The Story of Winter Sports, p. 78, at Google Books. AuthorHouse. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
Bradl later spoke fondly of the jump which made him an icon in the sport:
The air pushed violently against my chest; I leaned right into it and let it carry me. I had only one wish: to fly as far as possible! ... [After landing the jump], many thousands of curious eyes looked up at the judges' tower. I could hardly believe it when an additional "1" popped up on the scoreboard!Maurer, Lutz (12 March 2011). "Sepp Bradl: Bubis Sprung in die Geschichte" (in German). Oberösterreichische Nachrichten. Wimmer Medien. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
Dispute between the FIS and Planica
In the early 1930s, prior to the construction of Bloudkova velikanka, the FIS had deemed ski jumping hills with a K-point (German: Konstruktionspunkt) of to be the absolute largest permissible.B. Allen, E. John (March 2006). Skiing Heritage Journal, pp. 34–39, at Google Books. International Skiing History Association. Retrieved 4 November 2025. Athletes who chose to compete on hills with a K-point of more than were outright denied a licence to jump, and events allowing for distances beyond were strongly discouraged – even denounced – on the grounds that they were unnecessarily dangerous and brought the sport into disrepute. Bloudek and his team nonetheless went ahead and flouted the rules in creating a so-called "mammoth hill" specifically designed for previously unimaginable distances. Bloudkova velikanka originally had a K-point of 90 m, by far the largest of any hill at the time, but was upgraded in less than two years to in eager anticipation of the 100+ m jumps to come. In 1938, two years after his milestone jump, Josef Bradl improved his world record by a wide margin to .Elkins, Frank (27 February 1941). "Ski Slopes and Trails". The New York Times. A. G. Sulzberger. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
After a period of wrangling and increasing public interest in the novelty of this new 'extreme' form of ski jumping, the FIS relented. In 1938, a decision was made at the fifteenth International Ski Congress in Helsinki, Finland, to allow for "experimental" hill design, thereby officially recognising ski flying as a sanctioned discipline."15th Helsinki (FIN) 1938". FIS. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2025. Despite this reluctant recognition, the FIS still frowned upon the practice of aiming predominantly for long distances over style, and presently refuses to publish lists of world records in an official capacity.James, Kathleen (July–August 2011). Skiing Heritage Journal, p. 3, at Google Books. International Skiing History Association. Retrieved 4 November 2025. Furthermore, the rules for ski flying would not be fully established until after World War II.
In 1941, with the K-point increased further to , the world record was broken five times in Planica: it went from to in a single day, shared between four athletes. After World War II, Fritz Tschannen matched the K-point with a jump of 120 m in 1948.
1950s–1960s New hills across Europe
A challenger to Planica arrived in 1949 with the construction of Heini-Klopfer-Skiflugschanze ("Heini Klopfer ski flying hill") in Oberstdorf, West Germany. Designed by former ski jumper turned architect Heini Klopfer, as well as then-active ski jumpers Toni Brutscher and Sepp Weiler, the hill had a K-point of 120 m to match that of Bloudkova velikanka. The FIS, still wary of the rising popularity of ski flying and wanting to keep it in check, refused to sanction the construction of the hill, having previously denounced the 1947 and 1948 events in Planica.
The stance of the FIS eased once again, as the inaugural event in Oberstdorf was given approval to be staged in 1950. During this week-long event, an estimated crowd of altogether 100,000 witnessed the world record fall three times, with Dan Netzell claiming the final figure of . Tauno Luiro eclipsed it the following year by jumping , a world record which would stay in place for almost ten years until Jože Šlibar jumped in 1961.
Also in 1950, a ski flying hill was built at Kulm in Tauplitz/Bad Mitterndorf, Austria. Peter Lesser first equalled the world record there in 1962, improving it three years later to . Another hill entered the scene in 1966, when Vikersundbakken ("Vikersund hill") in Vikersund, Norway, was rebuilt to ski flying specifications, having originally opened as a ski jumping hill in 1936. On this newly rebuilt hill the world record was first equalled by Bjørn Wirkola, then broken again by Wirkola the next day.
Breaking the 150 metre barrier The world record returned to Oberstdorf a year later, being broken three times at the same event; Lars Grini becoming the first athlete to reach . A month later, Reinhold Bachler jumped in Vikersund, which would be the last world record on that hill until 2011.
Seeking to co-operate on hill design and event organisation, the venues at Kulm, Oberstdorf and Planica formed the KOP working group in 1962 (KOP being an abbreviation of Kulm/Oberstdorf/Planica).Brady, M. Michael; Ward, James (February 1970). Ski, pp. 50–52, at Google Books. Universal Publishing and Distributing Corporation. Retrieved 4 November 2025. This group would go on to consult with the FIS in all aspects of ski flying, celebrating their 50th anniversary in 2012."50 Years KOP" (PDF). Internationale Skiflugvereinigung KOP. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2025. In 1953, Kulm hosted the first International Ski Flying Week, which would be the premier event in ski flying until 1972."Skiflying Week Winners (European / Non-World Cup)" (PDF). skisprungschanzen.com. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
Planica reclaimed the world record in 1969 with a new hill named Velikanka bratov Gorišek ("Giant by brothers Gorišek"). This was the brainchild of Slovenian brothers Janez and Vlado Gorišek, both engineers, who opted to design a new hill with a K-point of instead of enlarging the adjacent Bloudkova velikanka, which was showing signs of deterioration. Today, Janez is affectionately called the "father" of modern ski flying and a revered figure in Slovenia."Ambassador's Greeting". norvegia.hu. 29 April 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2015. Bloudkova velikanka was subsequently recategorised as a ski jumping hill."Velikanka, Planica". skisprungschanzen.com. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
In the opening event at Velikanka bratov Gorišek, five world records were set: Wirkola and Jiří Raška traded it amongst themselves four times, until Manfred Wolf ended their run with a jump of . The 1960s remains the decade with the highest amount of world records since the advent of ski flying, with seventeen in total set on the hills in Oberstdorf, Planica, Kulm, and Vikersund. By contrast the 1950s had the fewest with five, all set in Oberstdorf."Ski flying world records". skisprungschanzen.com. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
1970s Planica versus Oberstdorf
The world record stayed in Planica for four years, during which the K-point at Velikanka bratov Gorišek was upgraded to 165 m in time for the inaugural Ski Flying World Championships in 1972, which eventually superseded International Ski Flying Week. This new event was sanctioned a year earlier by the FIS at their 28th International Ski Congress in Opatija, Croatia (then a part of Yugoslavia)."28th Opatija (YUG) 1971". FIS. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2025. Much like in 1938 when the discipline received official recognition from the FIS, another milestone had been reached as ski flying was now granted its own world championship–level event on par with the Nordic World Ski Championships in ski jumping, having spent almost four decades as a mere 'special attraction' alongside its older and more prestigious sibling.