Jari Markus Puikkonen (born 25 June 1959) is a Finnish former

ski jumper Ski jumping is a winter sport in which competitors aim to achieve the farthest jump after sliding down on their skis from a specially designed curved ramp. Along with jump length, competitor's aerial style and other factors also affect the fin ...

Career

Puikkonen made his debut internationally in the

Four Hills Tournament The Four Hills Tournament () or the German-Austrian Ski Jumping Week () is a ski jumping event composed of four World Cup events and has taken place in Germany and Austria each year since 1953. With few exceptions, it has consisted of the ski ju ...

competition in

Oberstdorf Oberstdorf (Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Oberschdorf'') is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality and skiing and hiking town in Germany, located in the Allgäu region of the Bavarian Alps. It is the southernmost settlement in German ...

on 30 December 1977. He won his first World Cup victory at

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

in 1981. That year he finished third overall in the Four Hills Tournament and he won three more victories in the ski jumping World Cup to finish fifth overall. He also won three medals at the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (), also known as the Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were held i ...

with a gold in the team large lill (

1988 Winter Olympics The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Calgary 1988 were a multi-sport event held from February 13 to 28, 1988, with Calgary, Calgary, Alberta as the main host city. This marks the m ...

), and bronze medals in both the individual normal hill (

1984 Winter Olympics The 1984 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIV Olympic Winter Games (Serbo-Croatian language, Serbo-Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; Serbian Cyrillic alphabet, Serbian Cyrillic: ; ) and commonly known as Sarajevo '84 (Serbian Cy ...

) and the individual large hill (

1980 Winter Olympics The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially the XIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Lake Placid 1980, were an international multi-sport event held from February 13 to 24, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York, United States. Lake Placid was elected ...

). Puikkonen's biggest successes were at the

FIS Nordic World Ski Championships The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships is a biennial Nordic skiing event organized by the International Ski Federation (FIS). The World Championships was started in 1925 for men and opened for women's participation in 1954. World Championship eve ...

, where he won seven medals, including four golds (individual large hill:

1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...

, team large hill:

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

, 1989), two silvers (individual normal hill:

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...

, individual large hill: 1985), and one bronze (team large hill: 1982). He also won a gold medal at the FIS Ski-Flying World Championships 1981. Puikkonen retired after the 1990/91 season.

World Cup

Standings

Wins

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Puikkonen, Jari 1959 births Living people Sportspeople from Lahti Skiers from Päijät-Häme Finnish male ski jumpers Olympic ski jumpers for Finland Ski jumpers at the 1980 Winter Olympics Ski jumpers at the 1984 Winter Olympics Ski jumpers at the 1988 Winter Olympics Olympic medalists in ski jumping FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in ski jumping Medalists at the 1984 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1988 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1980 Winter Olympics Olympic gold medalists for Finland Olympic bronze medalists for Finland 20th-century Finnish sportsmen