Ski Jumpers take to the Skies in the New Year’s Master Ski Jump

By AlpineZone News |
Dec 18 2009 - 10:56 AM

LAKE PLACID, New York — The Art Devlin Cup, symbolic of ski jumping excellence over three competitions, will be up for grabs, Wednesday, Dec. 30, in Lake Placid, N.Y. when the Olympic Jumping Complex hosts the 55th Annual New Year’s Masters Ski Jump. The event will be conducted by the New York Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA), managers of Lake Placid’s Winter Olympic venues. The annual competition will take place on the 90-meter hill beginning at 6 p.m., with a second round scheduled for 7 p.m.

Ski jumping legends such as Lake Placid’s Art Devlin, who won this event twice, two-time winner Bjorn Wirkola of Norway, three-time Masters king and Lake Placid native Jay Rand, Jr., and Art Tokle, victorious in the 1955 inaugural, all have their names emblazoned on the Cup. The Art Devlin Cup measures excellence over the July 4, Columbus Day and New Year’s ski jumps. The winner of the Masters Ski Jump will receive $800, while the recipient of the Art Devlin Cup will pocket a $1,000 bonus.

Centerplate, ORDA’s concessionaire, will serve hot beverages and seasonal snacks at the base of the chair lift.

Jumping begins, Tuesday, Dec. 29, when NYSEF hosts its annual ski jumping and Nordic combined event. Many of these athletes are moving through the ranks with hopes of one day making the U.S. team in the future. Competition begins at 11 a.m.

The action continues Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 2-3, with the North American junior ski jumping and Nordic combined championships. Some of the best ski jumpers and Nordic combined athletes in North America will descend on Lake Placid to compete in this event. The ski jumping competition is on the 90-meter hill, while the Nordic athletes hit the cross-country trails, at the Olympic Sports Complex, after the jumping portion.

Daily admission to the ski jumping events is $14 for adults, $8 for juniors/seniors while children 6 and under enter free.

For more information on the Olympic venues and events, and for web cams from five locations, please log on to www.whitefacelakeplacid.com.

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