Adam Henryk Małysz (; born 3 December 1977) is a Polish 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 ...

and

rally driver Rally is a wide-ranging form of motorsport with various competitive motoring elements such as speed tests (often called ''rally racing),'' navigation tests, or the ability to reach waypoints or a destination at a prescribed time or average speed. ...

. He competed in ski jumping from 1995 to 2011 and is one of the most successful athletes in the history of the sport. His many accomplishments include four

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 ...

titles (a male record shared with Matti Nykänen), four individual Winter Olympic medals, four individual

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

gold medals (an all-time record), 39 individual World Cup competition wins, 96 World Cup podiums (individual and team), and being the first male ski jumper to win three consecutive World Cup titles. He is also a winner of the Four Hills Tournament, the only three-time winner of the Nordic Tournament, and a former ski flying world record holder. After retiring from ski jumping, Małysz competed in the

Dakar Rally The Dakar Rally (or simply "The Dakar"; formerly known as the "Paris–Dakar Rally") is an annual rally raid organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation. Most events since the inception in 1978 were staged from Paris, France, to Dakar, Senegal ...

in 2012, 2013 and 2014 finishing 37th, 15th and 13th respectively. In 2018-2022 period he was a director-coordinator of ski jumping and

Nordic combined Nordic combined is a winter sport in which athletes compete in cross-country skiing and ski jumping. The Nordic combined at the Winter Olympics has been held since the first ever Winter Olympics in 1924, while the FIS Nordic Combined World Cup ...

at the Polish Ski Federation. On June 25, 2022, he was elected CEO of Polish Ski Federation

Ski jumping career

Małysz began his senior-level ski jumping career on 4 January 1995, finishing seventeenth at the third event of the Four Hills Tournament in Innsbruck. In his first two

seasons, he was moderately successful, winning in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

on 17 March 1996; 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 ci ...

on 18 January 1997; and in Hakuba on 26 January. His breakthrough season came in 2000–01, when he won the Four Hills Tournament and ended Martin Schmitt's long run of success dating back to 1998–99. Małysz went on to dominate the season by reeling off five consecutive individual victories in Innsbruck, Bischofshofen, both

ski flying Ski flying is a winter sport discipline derived from ski jumping, in which much greater distances can be achieved. It is a form of competitive individual sport, individual Nordic skiing where athletes descend at high speed along a specially de ...

competitions in

Harrachov Harrachov (; german: Harrachsdorf) is a town in Jablonec nad Nisou District in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic, close to the border with Poland. It has about 1,300 inhabitants. It is known for its ski resort. Administrative parts The to ...

, and Park City. Further success came at the 2001 World Championships, in which he won a gold medal on the individual normal hill and silver on the individual large hill. He finished the season by a landslide points margin with three more consecutive wins in

Falun Falun () is a city and the seat of Falun Municipality in Dalarna County, Sweden, with 37,291 inhabitants in 2010. It is also the capital of Dalarna County. Falun forms, together with Borlänge, a metropolitan area with just over 100,000 inhabi ...

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, an ...

and Oslo to claim his first Nordic Tournament title. The 2001–02 season saw Małysz pick up where he left off, as he never once lost the lead in the World Cup standings. A streak of five wins by a highly motivated Sven Hannawald in December 2001 through January 2002 looked to threaten Małysz's run, but burnout prematurely ended Hannawald's challenge. Małysz picked up one last win of the season in Zakopane to the delight of his Polish fans, thereafter finishing consistently on the podium to claim his second World Cup title by a comfortable points margin. He also won silver on the individual large hill and bronze on the individual normal hill at the

2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Salt Lake 2002 ( arp, Niico'ooowu' 2002; Gosiute dialect, Gosiute Shoshoni: ''Tit'-so-pi 2002''; nv, Sooléí 2002; Shoshoni language, Shoshoni: ''Soó ...

in Park City. Małysz faced stiff competition in defence of his World Cup title throughout the 2002–03 season. Despite second place at the season-opener in Kuusamo, he failed to win a competition for nearly four months. The lead of the overall standings changed hands several times until the final month of the season, by which time Małysz began to regain his form. At the 2003 World Championships in Predazzo, he won the gold medal in both the individual normal and large hill competitions. This was followed up by three straight wins in Oslo and

Lahti Lahti (; sv, Lahtis) is a city and municipality in Finland. It is the capital of the region of Päijänne Tavastia (Päijät-Häme) and its growing region is one of the main economic hubs of Finland. Lahti is situated on a bay at the southern ...

(twice in the latter), securing his second Nordic Tournament title. Małysz ended the season on a high by equalling the then-

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book '' Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizati ...

of in Planica, as well as fending off a late challenge by Sven Hannawald, who again finished runner-up in the overall World Cup standings—albeit with six wins to Małysz's three, and by a closer margin than before. In the following years, as is the case with almost all ski jumpers in the prime of their career, Małysz was unable to maintain his previous form. He only managed twelfth in the 2003–04 season, finishing on the podium four times but without a win. 2004–05 saw an improvement with fourth place in the overall standings as well as four wins; these came on the large hill in Harrachov, the ski flying hill in Kulm, and a double win in Zakopane. The only highlights of Małysz's 2005–06 campaign, in which he finished ninth overall, were third place 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 ...

and a win in Oslo. Małysz experienced a significant career resurgence in 2006–07, which began with a surprise win in

Oberstdorf Oberstdorf (Low Alemannic: ''Oberschdorf'') is a municipality and skiing and hiking town in Germany, located in the Allgäu region of the Bavarian Alps. It is the southernmost settlement in Germany and one of its highest towns. At the&nb ...

in January 2007. This was followed up by a double victory in

Titisee-Neustadt Titisee-Neustadt () is a municipality in the district of Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is made up of the six communities of Neustadt, Langenordnach, Rudenberg, Titisee, Schwärzenbach and Waldau. The tow ...

, an individual gold medal on the normal hill at the 2007 World Championships, and a hat-trick of wins during the Nordic Tournament (Lahti, Kuopio, and Oslo) to win his third and final such title. The season was punctuated with a clean sweep of all three competitions in Planica, which enabled him to leapfrog his younger competitor Anders Jacobsen with only two competitions remaining. This secured Małysz a fourth World Cup title, equalling Matti Nykänen's record total in the 1980s. Sporadic success from 2008 to 2011 saw Małysz achieve seventeen podiums, as well as silver medals in both the individual normal hill and large hill competitions at the

2010 Winter Olympics )'' , nations = 82 , athletes = 2,626 , events = 86 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , opening = February 12, 2010 , closing = February 28, 2010 , opened_by = Governor General Michaëlle Jean , cauldron = Catriona Le May Doan Nancy GreeneWayne Gr ...

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

. A fitting end to Małysz's career came in the form of a home victory in Zakopane on 21 January 2011 and third place at the season finale in Planica on 20 March. Małysz publicly announced his retirement from ski jumping six days later.

Legacy and awards

Małysz's success contributed to his enormous popularity not only among ski jumping fans but throughout Poland as well. Additionally, he is the only five-time winner of the ski jumping event at the

Holmenkollen Ski Festival The Holmenkollen Ski Festival ( no, Holmenkollen skifestival or ) is a traditional annual Nordic skiing event in Holmenkollen, Oslo, Norway. The full official name of the event is Holmenkollen FIS World Cup Nordic. History It takes place in Marc ...

(in 1996, 2001, 2003, 2006 and 2007), earning the Holmenkollen Medal in 2001 for his ski jumping victories (shared with

Bente Skari Bente Skari, née Martinsen, (born 10 September 1972) is a Norwegian former cross-country skier. She is one of the most successful cross-country skiers ever. Career She won her first Olympic medals in 1998, and won her first gold medal in the 20 ...

and

Thomas Alsgaard Thomas Alsgaard (born 10 January 1972) is a Norwegian former professional cross-country skier. Alsgaard is regarded by many as the best performer of the freestyle technique (skating) in cross-country skiing and many of today's best skiers have stu ...

). He was also voted four times the Polish sportsman of the year (2001, 2002, 2003, 2007). For his sporting achievements, he received the

Order of Polonia Restituta , image=Polonia Restituta - Commander's Cross pre-1939 w rib.jpg , image_size=200px , caption=Commander's Cross of Polonia Restituta , presenter = the President of Poland , country = , type=Five classes , eligibility=All , awar ...

: Officer's Cross (4th Class), 2002
Commander's Cross (3rd Class), 2007
Commander's Cross with Star (2nd Class), 2010

World Cup

Season titles

Victories

Total podiums

# Iron Mountain – 18 February 1996 (2nd place) #

– 1 March 1996 (3rd place shared with

Primož Peterka Primož Peterka () is a Slovenian former ski jumper who competed from 1996 to 2011. He is one of the most successful athletes from Slovenia, having won fifteen individual World Cup competitions, two consecutive overall World Cup titles, a Ski Fl ...

) #

– 13 March 1996 (2nd place) #

/ Holmenkollen – 17 March 1996 (1st place) # Bischofshofen – 6 January 1997 (2nd place) # Engelberg – 11 January 1997 (3rd place) #

– 18 January 1997 (1st place) # Hakuba – 26 January 1997 (1st place) # Garmisch-Partenkirchen – 1 January 2001 (3rd place) # Innsbruck – 4 January 2001 (1st place) # Bischofshofen – 6 January 2001 (1st place) #

(HS 205) – 13 January 2001 (1st place) #

(HS 205) – 14 January 2001 (1st place) #

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

– 20 January 2001 (1st place) #

– 27 January 2001(1st place) #

– 28 January 2001 (1st place) # Willingen – 3 February 2001 (2nd place) # Willingen – 4 February 2001 (1st place) #

(HS 213) – 4 March 2001 (2nd place) #

– 7 March 2001 (1st place) #

/ Granasen – 9 March 2001 (1st place) #

/ Holmenkollen – 11 March 2001 (1st place) #

– 23 November 2001 (1st place) #

– 24 November 2001 (2nd place) #

– 1 December 2001 (1st place) #

– 2 December 2001 (2nd place) #

Villach Villach (; sl, Beljak; it, Villaco; fur, Vilac) is the seventh-largest city in Austria and the second-largest in the federal state of Carinthia. It is an important traffic junction for southern Austria and the whole Alpe-Adria region. , the ...

– 8 December 2001 (1st place) # Engelberg – 16 December 2001 (1st place) # Val di Fiemme/ Predazzo – 21 December 2001 (1st place) # Val di Fiemme/ Predazzo – 22 December 2001 (1st place) # Garmisch-Partenkirchen – 1 January 2002 (3rd place) # Innsbruck – 4 January 2002 (2nd place) # Zakopane – 20 January 2002 (1st place) #

– 1 March 2002 (2nd place) #

– 15 March 2002 (2nd place) #

/ Holmenkollen – 17 March 2002 (3rd place) # Kuusamo – 29 November 2002 (2nd place) #

– 14 December 2002 (3rd place) # Garmisch-Partenkirchen – 1 January 2003 (2nd place shared with Andreas Goldberger) # Zakopane – 18 January 2003 (3rd place) # Zakopane – 19 January 2003 (3rd place) # Tauplitz/

Bad Mitterndorf Bad Mitterndorf is a town in Salzkammergut in the Austrian state of Styria. Situated between Salzburg and Graz, it is a popular winter sports resort and also as a location for walking and cycling in the summer. Bad Mitterndorf is the site of tw ...

– 1 February 2003 (3rd place) #

/ Holmenkollen – 9 March 2003 (1st place) #

– 14 March 2003 (1st place) #

– 15 March 2003 (1st place) # Planica ( letalnica, HS215) – 22 March 2003 (2nd place) # Kuusamo – 28 November 2003 (2nd place) # Kuusamo – 30 November 2003 (2nd place) # Zakopane – 17 January 2004(2nd place) # Zakopane – 18 January 2004 (2nd place) #

(HS 142) – 11 December 2004 (1st place) #

(HS 137) – 29 December 2004 (3rd place) # Innsbruck – 3 January 2005 (2nd place) # Tauplitz/

– 15 January 2005 (3rd place) # Tauplitz/

– 16 January 2005 (1st place) #

– 23 January 2005 (2nd place) # Zakopane – 29 January 2005 (1st place shared with Roar Ljøkelsøy) # Zakopane – 30 January 2005 (1st place) #

– 9 March 2005 (3rd place shared with Jakub Janda) #

– 7 March 2006 (3rd place) #

/ Holmenkollen – 12 March 2006 (1st place) # Lillehammer – 3 December 2006 (3rd place) # Engelberg – 16 December 2006 (3rd place) #

(HS 137) – 30 December 2006 (3rd place) #

(HS 137) – 27 January 2007 (1st place) #

(HS 142) – 3 February 2007 (1st place) #

(HS 142) – 4 February 2007 (1st place) # Klingenthal – 7 February 2007 (3rd place) #

(HS 130) – 11 March 2007 (1st place) #

(HS 127) – 13 March 2007 (1st place) #

/ Holmenkollen (HS 128) – 17 March 2007 (1st place) # Planica ( letalnica, HS215) – 23 March 2007 (1st place) # Planica ( letalnica, HS215) – 24 March 2007 (1st place) # Planica ( letalnica, HS215) – 25 March 2007 (1st place) #

/ Puijo – 10 March 2009 (3rd place) # Planica ( letalnica, HS215) – 20 March 2009 (2nd place) # Planica ( letalnica, HS215) – 22 March 2009 (2nd place) # Lillehammer – 5 December 2009 (3rd place) # Klingenthal – 3 February 2010 (2nd place) #

(HS 130) – 7 March 2010 (2nd place) #

(HS 127) – 9 March 2010 (2nd place) # Lillehammer – 12 March 2010 (3rd place) #

/ Holmenkollen – 14 March 2010 (2nd place) # Engelberg – 18 December 2010 (2nd place) # Engelberg – 19 December 2010 (3rd place) # Garmisch-Partenkirchen – 1 January 2011 (3rd place) # Innsbruck – 3 January 2011 (2nd place) #

(HS 205) – 8 January 2011 (3rd place) #

– 15 January 2011 (3rd place) # Zakopane – 21 January 2011 (1st place) # Vikersund – 13 February 2011 (3rd place) # Planica ( letalnica, HS215) – 20 March 2011 (3rd place)

Personal life

Adam Małysz was born in Wisła, Poland, to Ewa and Jan Małysz. He has an older sister – Iwona (born 1975). He graduated from a vocational high school in Ustroń, where he learned a profession (specialisation: tinsmith-roofer). He speaks German very well. On 16 June 1997, he married Izabella Polok (born 4 December 1978). The wedding took place at the Evangelical Church of St. Peter and Paul in the Wisła (Izabella is Catholic). On 31 October 1997, Izabella gave birth to their daughter – Karolina. His life motto is ''"Be good and that's it"'' and his idol is a German former ski jumper Jens Weißflog. His religion is

Lutheranism Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

.Laureaci "Śląskich Szmaragdów" 2007 – Nagrody Biskupa Diecezji Katowickiej Kościoła Ewangelicko-Augsburskiego w RP
''Ewangelik'' 2007, no. 4. On 1 April 2007 Małysz opened a Trophy Gallery, which includes all the major medals and trophies he won during his career, including the Crystal Globe trophies for victories in the World Cup. The Gallery is located in the building of the Izabella and Adam Małysz Foundation in Wisła, Poland.

References

External links

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Malysz, Adam 1977 births Living people Polish male ski jumpers Holmenkollen medalists Holmenkollen Ski Festival winners Olympic ski jumpers of Poland Olympic silver medalists for Poland Olympic bronze medalists for Poland Ski jumpers at the 1998 Winter Olympics Ski jumpers at the 2002 Winter Olympics Ski jumpers at the 2006 Winter Olympics Ski jumpers at the 2010 Winter Olympics Polish Lutherans People from Wisła Polish Gorals Commanders with Star of the Order of Polonia Restituta Olympic medalists in ski jumping FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in ski jumping Medalists at the 2010 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics Sportspeople from Silesian Voivodeship World record setters in ski flying