Slovenian ski jumper Peter Prevc wins 4 Hills Tour

By foxsports
Published

BISCHOFSHOFEN, Austria (AP) Ski jumper Peter Prevc became the first Slovenian winner of the Four Hills Tour in nearly two decades after winning the final stop on Wednesday.

Already enjoying a comfortable lead following his wins in Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Innsbruck, Prevc jumped 139 and 142.5 meters for his third straight victory.

He finished the tour on 1,139.4 points, ahead of world champion Severin Freund of Germany with 1,112.9. Michael Hayboeck of Austria was third with 1,081.6.

''Slovenia hadn't won for a long, long time. I am really happy,'' Prevc said. ''It was such an amazing Four Hills Tour for me. I never hoped it would be this good.''

Prevc is the second tour winner from Slovenia after Primoz Peterka in 1997, and the first non-Austrian winner since Janne Ahonen of Finland in 2008.

Prevc, Freund, and Hayboeck also finished 1-2-3 in the final event. It's the first time in 10 years that no Austrian has won at least one of the four stops.

Freund took the first stop of the tour in Oberstdorf but lost his lead after Prevc's first win in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

''It was a wonderful tour for me, that gave me a lot of joy,'' said Freund, who finished in the top three in all events. ''Four times on the podium, that was really fun. You simply have to say that (Prevc) was clearly better.''

A sixth win of the season also extended Prevc's lead over Freund in the overall World Cup standings. He has 924 points after 11 events, and Freund trails him by 205. Kenneth Gangnes of Norway is third with 595.

''We have to make sure the season isn't going to be boring,'' Freund said about Prevc's dominance. ''We will do everything we can.''

The World Cup continues in Willingen, Germany, this weekend.