Things have finally begun to click for Japan's Ryoyu Kobayashi, who won his second ski jumping World Cup event of the season and 29th overall on home snow Sunday.
Kobayashi earned his third straight podium finish with the win at Okurayama Hill in Sapporo. He registered the second-best opening jump of 141 meters before leaping 143 meters on his second effort to snatch the top spot with 280.9 points.
Halvor Egner Granerud of Norway, who was on top after the first jump, finished second on 268.9, with Germany's Markus Eisenbichler third on 256.9.
"I could produce big jumps. It gives me confidence," said Kobayashi, who began wearing a new suit at this meet in Sapporo.
"My gear, technique and body are all starting to click. The gear has been difficult and I had to try hard (at the takeoff)...Now I'm starting to feel I have a lot of leeway."
Among the other Japanese jumpers, Ren Nikaido finished 14th and Ryoyu's elder brother Junshiro 29th.
Naoki Nakamura, Keiichi Sato and Yukiya Sato did not advance to the second jump after finishing outside the top 30 with their first efforts.
