The take-off in ski jumping explained: why the fraction of a second at the edge decides everything and how to approach it safely, supervised, step by step.
The take-off is the most important moment in ski jumping — it decides the entire flight, and it lasts only fractions of a second [1]. In the instant the jumper leaves the take-off table (the launch edge), everything is set: the flight's initial speed, the angle of the flight curve, the body's rotation and its attitude in the air [1]. Miss this moment by milliseconds and the jump is gone, no matter how strong you are.
The striking part: it is barely about raw height. The jumper reaches the edge at around 90 km/h [2] in a deep in-run crouch (trunk forward, knees strongly bent, arms close to the body to minimize drag) — and then extends explosively forward and up. The take-off velocity perpendicular to the hill is only about 2 to 3 m/s [1] — a short, precise impulse, not a high hop. Ski jumping is not won in the air but in that one fraction of a second at the edge.
And the nerve? Here it is not recklessness but the ability to call up a rehearsed movement at the right moment — even though the body wants to brake. That is exactly why you learn it step by step, not with one big jump.
This section explains what happens in the take-off and how to approach it safely — it is not an instruction to jump a hill on your own.
The take-off sets the flight's starting conditions: speed, angle, rotation, body attitude [1]. That is why jumpers train this fraction of a second more than any other phase. Once you understand that, you stop trying to "make" the flight and focus on the edge.
The in-run is only about speed: deep into the crouch, trunk forward, arms close, so drag stays minimal [2]. The power for the take-off comes from this stable, deep position — upright, there is no good take-off.
At the table the jumper explosively extends hip and knee and tips the upper body forward over the skis. Measured, that means: the hip opens to roughly 86 to 109 degrees, the knee to 136 to 171 degrees, the trunk leans forward, the skis rise [3]. This single extension is the take-off — short, coordinated, forward rather than up.
The road there runs through dry-land practice, trampoline and the smallest hill [4], later through water ramps that take away the fear of flying [5]. Every step is supervised, every enlargement released only with ability. That is how "nerve" becomes a trained reflex.
Plain talk, because ski jumping is a high-risk sport: separate understanding from execution. This guide explains what physically happens in the take-off — it is explicitly not an instruction to jump a hill yourself. You learn the take-off exclusively on an approved hill, in strict progression from the smallest size upward, under the supervision of a qualified coach [5].
That is not a platitude: the most severe typical acute injury happens on landing, not on take-off — and the landing is the part a text cannot teach you. A coach matches the hill size to your ability and secures the transition. This guide never replaces hill training with a club or coach — it should only take away the awe and show that behind the "nerve" sits a learnable technique.
If you really want to understand the take-off, watch slow-motion footage and focus on just one thing: how short the moment is in which the jumper extends. It looks like a gentle lean forward but is an explosive extension push in fractions of a second [1]. Once you see that, you understand why jumpers practise this single instant thousands of times — and why nobody just "gives it a go" on their own.
The take-off. It lasts only fractions of a second but sets the entire flight: speed, angle, rotation and body attitude in the air [1]. That is why jumpers train this one instant more than any other phase — it decides distance and safety at once.
From the deep in-run crouch at around 90 km/h [2], the jumper explosively extends hip and knee at the launch edge and tips forward over the skis — the hip to about 86 to 109 degrees, the knee to 136 to 171 degrees [3]. The velocity perpendicular to the hill is only about 2 to 3 m/s [1]: a short, precise impulse forward, not a jump upward.
Around 90 km/h at take-off [2] — as fast as a car on a country road. This speed comes from the deep in-run crouch, which minimizes drag. It is the base for the whole flight: without in-run speed, even the best take-off helps little.
No. "Nerve" here is not recklessness but the ability to call up a rehearsed movement in the right fraction of a second. That is exactly why you learn it step by step: first dry-land practice and trampoline [4], then the smallest hill and water ramps [5], always supervised. Fear turns into a trained reflex — never a leap into the unknown.
From the Bunny Hill to the Big Hill: Club, Taster Course and the Right Progression