Slovenia's Domen Prevc lands big ski jump to capture gold on large hill at Milan Cortina Games

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PREDAZZO, Italy (AP) — Domen Prevc of Slovenia proved his formidable ski jumping prowess in the rain Saturday, coming from behind to capture the gold medal on the men’s large hill at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

Prevc was in second place going into the final round and landed a whopping 464-foot (141.5-meter) jump — the biggest of the night — to move ahead of Japan's Ren Nikaido, who won silver, and Kacper Tomasiak of Poland, who won bronze.

Despite the points deficit he faced, Prevc said he didn't feel any pressure on his final jump and tapped into the joy he got from the sport when he took it up as a kid in the footsteps of his older siblings.

“Even for the second round, I was like, ‘do your thing, do your best, enjoy the jump and feel the air,’" he said. “When I did a really good take-off, I was super happy and I could just enjoy the air.”

Nikaido, jumping last, couldn't quite match Prevc, landing about 16 1/2 feet (5 meters) short of the mark he had set.

The three are in their first Olympics and are multiple medal winners on the Predazzo ski hill.

It was the second gold for Prevc, after the mixed team victory Tuesday that he shared with his star sister, Nika.

Nikaido won bronze medals on the men’s normal hill and in the mixed team event. Tomasiak won silver on the normal hill.

Prevc, who is one of four siblings in his famous ski jumping family to win an Olympic medal, entered the event as the favorite.

He is the world champion on the large hill — dominating events all season — and set a distance record in ski flying.

Nikaido led after the first round, with Prevc in second and Norway’s Kristoffer Eriksen Sundal in third.

Tomasiak, who is in his rookie year on the World Cup, launched a second jump that knocked Sundal off the podium.

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AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics