TORINO: Notebook: Japanese jumping legend Harada could compete at age 37

TORINO: Notebook: Japanese jumping legend Harada could compete at age 37{mosimage}TORINO, Italy – Masahiko Harada, one of Japan’s greatest winter Olympians, could make a surprise comeback in the Normal Hill event at Torino.

At 37, Harada will be the oldest competitor in the ski jumping competition if he wins one of the four places on the Japan team in a pre-Games selection trial.

Harada has not been involved in the elite World Cup circuit since December 2002 but is among six jumpers provisionally included in the Japan team. Two will miss out.

”World Cups are held on large hill, and Masahiko does not like jumping on large hill – he is a Normal Hill specialist,” said Japan team spokesperson Chika Yoshida, explaining the recall.

Harada has stayed in shape by competing at some lower-tier international events on normal hill.

He won on the normal hill at the 1993 worlds in Sweden, the first Japanese jumper to win a World Championships ski jumping gold medal – and on the large hill at the 1997 worlds in Norway.

Harada had his ups and downs at the Olympics. In 1994, he failed on the last attempt when a jump of 105 meters would have secured victory for Japan.

He made amends at Nagano four years later, trying an Olympic record with a leap of 137 meters on the final jump to help Japan to gold.

He slipped to 20th at Salt Lake City and quit the tour later that year.

The qualification round for the normal hill event starts Saturday at Pragelato.

TOMBA MAKES PLEA: Alberto Tomba said Torino will be ready to host the Winter Games despite workers around the city still making final preparations ahead of Friday’s Opening Ceremony.

”They work a lot, they work hard the last months in Torino,” Tomba said Tuesday. ”Also in Athens there was a problem before the opening, but that is life. In three days time it is the Opening Ceremony. Let’s go for two weeks.”

Tomba won gold medals in the slalom and giant slalom at the 1998 Winter Games, and then added another GS title in 1992, becoming the first alpine skier to win gold medals in two consecutive games.

The Italian also won silvers in slalom in 1992 and 1994, and won the first overall World Cup championship along with slalom and giant slalom titles in 1995.

”I am very proud, very happy to be here in Torino for this Winter Games and it brings me luck,” Tomba added. ”I won my first race in Sestriere in 1987, the first slalom World Cup race and it was a great souvenir for me.”

SOME SCRATCH: The Torino Olympics won the lottery.

Italy’s government won a confidence vote Tuesday in Rome tied to financing for the Winter Olympics, including a scratch-card lottery that should produce $24.1 million (U.S) in revenue.

The measure, which passed the lower house of government 307-207, won approval in the Senate late last month.
Premier Silvio Berlusconi’s government drew up the funding bill to help cover a $96 million budget shortfall for the Winter Games.

The measure is attached to a broader bill on drug use. The government put it to a confidence vote, trying to ensure the swift passage of a flurry of legislation before parliament is dissolved at the end of the week ahead of April elections.

Italian governments use confidence votes to speed up legislation and close ranks among coalition lawmakers. If the government loses the vote, it must resign.

Berlusconi’s conservatives enjoy comfortable majorities in both houses of parliament.

– The Associated Press