Finland takes silver in team ski-jumping event

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Finland gained another silver medal - the third at these Olympics - on Monday night when the four-man ski-jumping team came second behind Austria and ahead of the Norwegian squad.
      The quartet of Tami Kiuru, Janne Happonen, Janne Ahonen, and Matti Hautamäki were initially disappointed at not securing a gold medal, but there was little doubt that on the night the Austrians, anchored by recent individual big hill gold medallist Thomas Morgernstern, were just too good for them.
      Although Finland's own anchor Matti Hautamäki jumped an impressive 138 metres with his second effort, Morgenstern held his composure and produced an even longer leap of 140.5 metres to give Austria victory by 7.4 points. Norway were a relatively distant third.
      The result at least gives a team medal to Janne Ahonen, making his final Olympic appearance. The 2004 and 2005 FIS World Cup winner Ahonen was widely expected to be among the individual medallists in Torino, but it was not to be. In a glittering career in which he has won more or less everything else, Ahonen has come no nearer than 4th at the Olympics. For Hautamäki, it was the second silver medal of this campaign, to go with one from the individual normal hill.
      It was Austria's first gold medal in the competition since it was introduced into the Games in 1988.


Links:
  Torino 2006 Official Site

Helsingin Sanomat