Schlierenzauer sets Pragelato hill record in victory

Seventeen-year-old Gregor Schlierenzauer of Austria set a hill record of 143.5 meters in the final round to win of the third competition in the Four Nations Grand Prix at Pragelato, Italy, on Thursday.
SEVENTEEN-YEAR-OLD Gregor Schlierenzauer of Austria set a hill record of 143.5 meters in the final round to win of the third competition in the Four Nations Grand Prix at Pragelato, Italy, on Thursday. A full house of 6,000 spectators, according to official estimates, attended to see another demonstration of Austrian early season prowess.
    Behind Schlierenzauer, Austrian Thomas Morgenstern, who became Olympic champion on the same hill, took second place. Morgenstern now shares the lead in the tournament with Poland’s Adam Malysz, who finished third.
    In the first round, Norway’s Roar Ljoekelsoey impressed with a jump of 133 meters and perfect style, taking the lead at halfway point. In the second round, one jumper after another delivered great long jumps. Martin Schmitt of Germany, only 12th after the first round, took an early lead with a second jump of 141.5 m that held until it was Malysz’s turn. Morgenstern then jumped 143 m, which seemed unbeatable until Schlierenzauer wiped out the previous record with his hill-record jump. Martin Schmitt, who ended up fourth, was the day’s “Manner Man of the Day.”
    A newcomer in the summer FIS Grand Prix ski jumping series, Pragelato made a successful debut and hopes to host other important events in the future. Carlo Fernandez, venue manager, noted, “We're certainly not stopping here, as we’re organizing the Italian championships in ski jumping and nordic combined [Sept. 22-23] and the men’s ski jumping Continental Cup [Dec. 1-2]. Our objective is to open the venue on Nov. 1 with artificial snow.”