Kasai Noriyaki: Still Chasing the Perfect Jump Vows to Keep Jumping Until He Turns 60!

Guinness World Cup record for most World Cup appearances in history
Eating 1.5 meals a day and his favorite, pork cutlet, only 3 times a year

The “legend” appeared at the gym inside Sapporo’s Okurayama Ski Jump Stadium, effortlessly hopping onto a rope just 5 cm wide stretched across the gym and walking about 3 meters as if tightrope walking.

“This is a training method called slacklining, which we mainly do during training camps in Miyakojima, Okinawa. During camps, we walk across ropes about 25 to 50 meters long.”

Sometimes stopping still on the rope to show off his outstanding sense of balance, Noriaki Kasai (52) demonstrated a physique so toned it could be mistaken for that of a man in his twenties.

“When younger athletes greet me with ‘Good work,’ I reply, ‘I’m not tired!’ (laughs). I believe negative words like tired aren’t good for yourself or others. And more than anything, my body truly doesn’t feel tired.”

Longing to be at the Top

The 2025–26 season, serving as the prelude to the Milan–Cortina d’Ampezzo Olympics, started slowly for Noriaki Kasai as he missed selection for the early World Cup events. However, he rebounded by winning back-to-back domestic titles at the TVh Cup and the Snow Brand Megmilk Cup in February, earning a spot on the World Cup Sapporo tournament team. On February 16, the second day of the event, he extended his own World Cup record for most appearances to 579.

“With those consecutive wins in Japan, I really felt that my condition had returned to a level where I can aim for a spot on the Olympic team. Of course, I still have to keep improving, but right now, the feeling of happiness is stronger than any sense of impatience.”

Kasai has competed in eight Olympic Games — a world record for Winter Olympians. The disappointment of missing out on selection for the 2022 Beijing Olympics at age 49 remains fresh in his memory.

“I really wanted to achieve my ninth Olympic appearance at Beijing. Still, the feeling of ‘I’ll aim for the next Olympics’ never went away. That’s because the dream of winning a gold medal has always stayed with me.

I’ve had three close calls with Olympic gold. In the team event at Lillehammer (’94), we lost the lead on Masahiko Harada’s final jump and settled for silver. In Nagano (’98), I wasn’t selected for the team event, and could only watch as Japan claimed the gold. Then in Sochi (’14), I missed out on gold in the individual event by just 1.3 points — a distance of only about 80 cm. I’ve been so close to grabbing that gold medal many times.”

Thorough self-control

Noriaki Kasai first donned the Hinomaru (the Japanese flag) at just 16 years old, when he competed in a World Cup event during his first year of high school. Since then, he has spent nearly 40 years competing at the top level. Behind his extraordinary longevity lies a level of self-discipline that few could ever replicate.

“In ski jumping, it’s said that losing 1 kilogram can extend your jump distance by 2 meters. Rankings are determined by both distance and the beauty of the jump and landing. Naturally, being lighter gives you an advantage.”

Competitors aim to cut weight right up to the minimum BMI allowed by regulations. Kasai has maintained a weight of 59 kg since he was 29 years old.

“My basic diet is about 1.5 meals a day. In summer, I eat a solid breakfast, have vegetable or mushroom soup that my wife prepares for lunch, and often skip dinner. In winter, I usually skip breakfast, eat a substantial lunch, and have just soup at night.

When I feel hungry, I drink black coffee to suppress it. I don’t really know why, but coffee works best for me. I used to be picky about grinding beans myself, but now I drink canned coffee without worrying about it.”

For protein, he mainly eats chicken breast or tenderloin. He admits he loves the “Cheese Roast Cutlet Set” at the Sapporo tonkatsu restaurant Tonyoshi, but limits himself to eating it only three times a year.

“Before a tournament in February this season, I went to eat tonkatsu and even had two extra bowls of rice. The next morning, I weighed 62.5 kg, so I had to run twice that day… I allow myself about five cheat days a year when I can eat what I like.

In my 20s, no matter how much I ate, I would lose weight just by moving around. I used to pour mayonnaise over everything — I even used to say, ‘Tonkatsu with sauce and mayo is the ultimate combo!’ (laughs). After turning 30, though, I almost completely gave up mayonnaise.”

In addition to strict dietary control, Kasai runs for 30 minutes every day without fail. Wearing long sleeves, tights, a sauna suit, and, in winter, additional layers like a windbreaker and down jacket, he runs a set 3.8 km course. After finishing, steam rises from his body, and he can lose more than 2 kilograms in a session.

“Even in the offseason, I always run in the morning. Unless I’m traveling for an overseas competition and can’t, I run every morning. I have a lot of muscle mass, so if I try to lose weight quickly, it strains my body. Maintaining my weight steadily suits me best.”

Kasai says he feels no physical decline. During the interview, he even demonstrated a trick by standing on a balance ball while holding his aerodynamic ski-jumping posture, showing his incredible balance and core strength.

The ideal is to be mindless

Along with conditioning, what Kasai values is actively resting his brain. Each jump takes about 5–6 seconds. Since they jump twice, the competition itself is over in just a few dozen seconds. However, ski jumpers heavily strain their brains for this brief period.

“On the day of a competition, it starts with opening the window as soon as I wake up and assessing the weather. I check the strength and direction of the wind, compare it with past experience, and do image training for that day’s jumps. After arriving at the venue, changing clothes, and getting on the lift, I visualize exactly what kind of jump I will do. The clearer the image up to the moment of victory, the better the result.

Once the competition starts, I change the way I jump based on the scores of my competitors. There’s an element of strategy too. There’s so much to think about that just doing two jumps leaves me exhausted. Although we are allowed to do two jumps during official practice before the competition, I deliberately only do one to avoid building up brain fatigue.”

In the past, after competitions, he would often dwell on thoughts like, “If only I had done this differently.”

“That put too much strain on my brain, so starting from the Sochi Olympics season, I made a firm decision to switch my mind on and off. Whether the day went well or not, I try to forget about jumping the moment I leave the venue. Lately, as soon as my car passes through the venue gate, the thoughts of jumping just pop out of my head.”

At 52, his mental and physical fulfillment only continues to grow. In the past, his greatest motivation was the desire to make his family, his team Tsuchiya Home, and all his supporters happy. However, his mindset has recently changed.

“Chasing the perfect jump—that’s what drives me now. Jumping with a clear mind, not even realizing how I landed, yet somehow finishing among the top—that’s the ideal. I manage to do two to three good jumps a year. But to fly completely mindlessly and end up at the top—I might not have achieved that even once in my career. It’s because I still have the desire to make that ideal jump that I can’t quit.

I’ve always said I would keep jumping until I was 54, the year of the Milan Olympics, but now that it’s getting closer, I realize I’m still fully capable. Now, I keep saying, ‘I’ll jump until I’m 60.’ If I can further improve my condition by next season and get good results in the World Cup, I could be selected for the Olympic team. If fate aligns in Milan, I believe I can reach that place.”

Kasai deliberately did not say that place out loud, but his gaze was firmly set on the medal that shines the brightest.

The image of his victory is always in his mind

From the April 4/11, 2025 issue of “FRIDAY”