Japan's Ryoyu Kobayashi picked up his fifth World Cup title of the season with a win at the Four Hills Tournament opener in Oberstdorf on Sunday night.
Kobayashi posted jumps of 138.5 and 126.5 meters in heavy winds for a 282.3 total score, just 0.4 ahead of Germany's Markus Eisenbichler. With 280.5, Austria's Stefan Kraft rounded out the podium at the 67th edition of the four-leg event held annually in Germany and Austria.
[Getty/Kyodo]
"It was a slim victory so it was a lot of fun," said Kobayashi, who has only missed the podium once in eight events this season.
"Getting a win during the Four Hills week is a bit different from other World Cups. I'm really happy," he said.
The 22-year-old Kobayashi became the second Japanese to win the first leg of the weeklong tournament since Kazuyoshi Funaki during the 1997-1998 season, and the last since Noriaki Kasai did so in 2000-2001 to set up an eventual overall win.
Among other Japanese competitors, Yukiya Sato finished 15th and Naoki Nakamura finished 29th. Daiki Ito and Kobayashi's older brother Junshiro each failed to qualify for the second round of jumps.
The Four Hills Tournament continues Monday with qualification for the second leg in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, followed by the competition on New Year's Day. The third and fourth legs will be held on Austrian hills in Innsbruck and Bischofshofen on Jan. 4 and 6, respectively.
