Yukio Kasaya is a former Japanese ski jumper

Ski jumping

Ski jumping is a sport in which skiers go down a take-off ramp, jump and attempt to land as far as possible down the hill below. In addition to the length of the jump, judges give points for style. The skis used for ski jumping are wide and long...

. He was one of the most successful ski jumpers of the late 1960s and the early 1970s. At the 1970 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships

1970 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships

The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1970 took place 14-22 February 1970 in Vysoké Tatry, Czechoslovakia. This was the second time this city hosted the event having done so in 1935. It was the first time an event was televised in colour from Czechoslovakia though broadcasting there remained in...

 at Vysoké Tatry

Vysoké Tatry (town)

Vysoké Tatry , informally Mesto Vysoké Tatry , is a town at the feet of the Slovak part of High Tatras in Slovakia including all the major resorts in that region...

, Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...

, he finished 2nd in the individual normal hill behind Gariy Napalkov

Gariy Napalkov

Gariy Napalkov . is a former Soviet ski jumper who competed from 1968 to 1976. He won both ski jumping events at the 1970 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Vysoké Tatry....

 (Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

). At the 1971/72 Four Hills Tournament

Four Hills Tournament

The Four Hills Tournament is composed of four Ski Jumping World Cup events and has taken place in Germany and Austria each year since 1952.The Four Hills Tournament champion is the one who gets the most points over the four events...

, he won the first three jumping events and would have probably won the overall combined tournament. However, before jumping in the last event at Bischofshofen

Bischofshofen

Bischofshofen is a city located in the Salzach valley in the Alps, in the District of Pongau, in Salzburgerland, Austria.The city is an important railway hub and lies at the Tauernautobahn, a highway route through the Alps....

, he returned to Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 in order to prepare for the 1972 Winter Olympics

1972 Winter Olympics

The 1972 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XI Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated from February 3 to February 13, 1972 in Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan...

, which took place in Sapporo. There he won the gold medal in the individual normal hill, where Japan won all 3 medals. In 1972 the Olympic Games also doubled as the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships

FIS Nordic World Ski Championships

The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships have been held in various numbers and types of events since 1925 for men and since 1954 for women. Championship events include nordic skiing's three disciplines: cross-country skiing, ski jumping, and nordic combined...

, so Kasaya's gold medal victory in the individual normal hill made him world champion as well.

As Japan's first ever Winter Olympic gold medalist, Kasaya is a national hero.

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