Ski Jumping] Nozomi Maruyama, back from a serious injury of ligament damage after a hard fall! A “hard worker” takes on the challenge of the Milano Olympics!

Nozomi Maruyama (27) Ski Jumping Women’s

Medal Expectation: ★★★★

Nozomi Maruyama is a hard worker.

She was expected to be a candidate for the national team at the last Olympics in Beijing in 2010, but fell hard at the All-Japan Championships held in Okurayama, Hokkaido in October 2009. He suffered a serious injury, including damage to the left anterior cruciate ligament of his left knee, and was forced to undergo nine months of rehabilitation.

He was also unable to compete on the podium at the main competitions in the two seasons prior to this season. 53-year-old ski jumping legend Noriaki Kasai explains, “My serious nature is not a good thing, but it is a good thing.

He is a very serious person, but that may have had a negative effect on his performance. Mr. Maruyama never misses a practice session, and he always reflects on his performance at each competition. He was always thinking about his jumps, and the stress must have built up in his body and brain.

After much trial and error, Maruyama has been practicing a calming training method that incorporates zazen (meditation). He raised the starting gate several tens of centimeters and tried to increase the distance by increasing the speed. The culmination of his efforts came at the World Cup Zao (Yamagata Prefecture) this past January, where he won his sixth race of the season with a huge jump of over 100 meters in the first run.

I was really looking forward to flying in this condition when I came back (from overseas), so I am very happy!

After the competition, Maruyama, who posed a gut-punch to the crowd, is no longer anxious.

From the February 20/27, 2026 issue of FRIDAY