Swiss ski jumper Simon Ammann won the first gold medal of the
Vancouver Winter Games on Sunday, sweeping aside his Austrian
rivals to win the individual normal gold contest.
It was the third Olympic gold for the diminutive 28-year-old
Ammann, who won both individual titles at the 2002 Games and then
flopped in 2006.
Ammann was narrowly ahead after the first round of jumping and then
put in a massive 108-metre jump, the longest of the day, to win
with 276.5 points. Poland's Adam Malysz, seeking his first gold at
the age of 32, came second with 269.5.
Austrian Gregor Schlierenzauer, tipped to dominate the individual
hills, slipped on landing after his first jump but recovered from
seventh to clinch the bronze with a jump of 106.5m for 268.0
points.
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