Karl Geiger
FILE -Ryoyu Kobayashi of Japan soars through the air during his second trial jump at the third stage of the 70th Four Hills ski jumping tournament in Innsbruck, Austria, Monday, Jan. 3, 2022. Even World-class athletes who compete in ski jumping and a former Olympian paid to analyze the sport have no idea who will win gold in Beijing. Defending Olympic champion Kamil Stoch has an injured left leg that is knocking him out of World Cup competition this week in his native Poland and puts his status for the 2022 Winter Olympics up in the air. Japan's Ryoyu Kobayashi is the world's top-ranked ski jumper. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader, File)
Japan’s Kobayashi among favorites in wide-open ski jumping

By Larry Lage Jan. 14, 2022 12:14 PM EST