OLYMPICS: Ski Jumping-Normal Hill training takes off, Domen Prevc decides to rest

PREDAZZO, Italy — Ski jumpers took to the slopes on Thursday as final preparations were underway for the Winter Games, with the sound of machinery filling the air ahead of Friday’s opening ceremony.

Floodlights illuminated the twin towers atop the stadium’s hills, including one in-run decorated with the iconic Olympic rings.

Slovenia’s gold medal hopeful Domen Prevc skipped the first official Normal Hill training session to conserve energy, along with compatriots Anze Lanisek and Timi Zajc.

Austria’s Stefan Kraft led the first round of jumps with a 103-meter leap, while Germany’s Felix Hoffmann topped the second round. Norway’s Kristoffer Eriksen Sundal claimed first place in the final training round.

Japan’s Ren Nikaido and Ryoyu Kobayashi did not make it into the top five in any of the three rounds.

“The hills were good,” said American Tate Franz after his second-round jump.

In the women’s Normal Hill training, Slovenia’s Nika Prevc and Austria’s Lisa Eder traded first and second-place finishes across the three rounds. Prevc, the world number one and sister of Domen, led the first two rounds, but Eder’s 102.5-meter jump earned her top spot in the final round.

The women will compete for the first ski jumping medal of the Milano Cortina Games on Saturday.

-Reporting by Liz Hampton and Tommy Lund; Editing by Ken Ferris/Reuters