(born 26 October 1970) is a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

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 fina ...

Career

His debut World Cup performance was on 16 December 1989 in

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous city ...

and at the moment he is the oldest ski jumper in a world of ski jumping. Competing in three

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) 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 h ...

, he won two medals in the team large hill event at the

with a silver in 1994 and a gold in 1998. Okabe had his biggest successes 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 e ...

, winning five medals. This included a gold in the individual normal hill (1995), a silver in the team large hill (1997), and three bronzes in the team large hill (1995, 2007, 2009). Okabe has five individual

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

victories, three of which came on flying hills. At the time of his latest win in

Kuopio Kuopio (, ) is a Finnish city and municipality located in the region of Northern Savonia. It has a population of , which makes it the most populous municipality in Finland. Along with Joensuu, Kuopio is one of the major urban, economic, and cult ...

on March 10, 2009 he was, at the age of 38 years and 135 days,http://infostradalive.com/2014/01/11/record-kasai-becomes-oldest-ski-jumper-to-win-wc-meet/ the oldest ski jumper to ever win a World Cup competition. This record has since been beaten by his compatriot

Noriaki Kasai is a Japanese ski jumper. His career achievements include a gold medal at the FIS Ski Flying World Championships 1992, 1992 Ski Flying World Championships, winning the Nordic Tournament 1999, 1999 Nordic Tournament, individual silver medal at th ...

. On 12 March 2014, the

International Ski Federation The ''Fédération internationale de ski et de snowboard'' (FIS; en, International Ski and Snowboard Federation) is the highest international governing body for skiing and snowboarding. Founded on 2 February 1924 in Chamonix, France during the ...

announced his retirement.

World Cup

Standings

Wins

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Okabe, Takanobu 1970 births Ski jumpers at the 1994 Winter Olympics Ski jumpers at the 1998 Winter Olympics Ski jumpers at the 2006 Winter Olympics Japanese male ski jumpers Living people Olympic ski jumpers of Japan People from Hokkaido Olympic silver medalists for Japan Olympic gold medalists for Japan Olympic medalists in ski jumping FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in ski jumping Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1994 Winter Olympics Sportspeople from Hokkaido