Why the telemark is mandatory in competition, how it spreads landing forces of up to 5.3 body weights per foot, and what that means for the cruciate ligament.
The telemark landing is the prescribed landing technique in ski jumping: one foot clearly ahead of the other, both knees deeply bent, arms stretched out sideways — and it is at the same time the sport's most effective protective technique [1]. Skip it in competition and you lose style points; master it and you spread the landing load across two legs instead of one [1][2].
How big that load is, pressure-insole measurements show: the maximum ground reaction force ranges between 1.1 and 5.3 body weights per foot [3]. At 70 kilograms of body weight that means, in the extreme, a good 370 kilograms of peak load on one foot — in a moment when both legs are loaded differently [2]. Which is why the landing, not the flight, is the most complex phase of the entire jump.
And that is exactly where the knee risk sits. High ground reaction forces in the landing phase are a main factor in the non-contact cruciate ligament rupture, together with knee internal rotation and rotation, flexion and abduction at the hip [2][3].
This section explains the technique and the scoring of the landing — it is not an instruction to practise a landing or to jump yourself.
One leg is pushed forward, the other stays back, both knees bend deeply, the arms go out to the sides and stabilise [1]. Instead of loading both legs hard at once, a long, sprung stride position arises. The landing load is spread and damped rather than compressed into a single impact [2].
Maximum ground reaction force in the landing ranges between 1.1 and 5.3 body weights per foot — and it is linked to flight time: the longer the flight, the higher the peak load [3]. Put differently: the long jump everyone cheers is also the most expensive one for knee and ankle.
The risk constellation is well described: high ground reaction forces, internal rotation at the knee, and rotation, flexion and abduction at the hip are the main biomechanical factors for a cruciate ligament injury in the landing phase [2][3]. Measurements further show that hip flexion and extension as well as knee and hip rotation in the front telemark leg relate directly to peak force [3]. A clean telemark is therefore not cosmetics but load management.
Honest and uncomfortable: ski jumping equipment is optimised more for the flight phase than for the landing. The bindings do not release like alpine bindings and limit the range of motion of knee and ankle — in case of imbalance that can put the cruciate ligament under load [4]. What protects is technique, not hardware.
Five judges award up to 20 style points each, the highest and lowest marks are dropped — leaving a maximum of 60 points [1]. A missing telemark costs around 3 points per judge and, depending on execution, can cost up to about 5 [1][7]; a fall counts for roughly 7 points per judge [7]. On big hills the landing therefore often decides, not the longest flight.
The landing is where the severe acute injuries happen in ski jumping: knee ligament injuries and concussions are the most frequent acute injuries, and the knee is the most common injury site [6]. Which is precisely why the landing is also the part no text can teach you.
This guide explains and motivates, it never replaces supervised training in a club or on the hill. Separate understanding from execution: knowing the telemark movement is knowledge, calling it up after a flight at high speed is a skill that arises exclusively in strict progression from the smallest hill upward — with qualified coaches, on certified facilities.
One reassuring point to close: the landing hill is steepest exactly where jumpers land and only flattens toward the outrun [5]. Jumpers do not drop from great height, they touch down flat on a falling slope. That makes the landing manageable — not harmless.
If you want to judge a telemark like a style judge, do not watch the feet — watch the knee of the front leg. That is where it is decided whether the load is damped or passed through: flexion and rotation in the front telemark leg relate directly to peak force [3]. A visually "pretty" stride with a too-straight front leg is the biomechanically worse one.
In the telemark one foot stands clearly ahead of the other, both knees are deeply bent, the arms stretched out sideways [1]. It is prescribed in competition because it forces a controlled, stable landing: the landing load is spread across two legs and damped rather than compressed into one impact [2]. If it is missing, that costs around 3 points per judge [1][7].
Besides distance, five judges award up to 20 style points each; the highest and lowest marks are dropped, leaving a maximum of 60 points [1]. Judged are flight stability, body posture and the landing. A missing telemark costs around 3 points per judge, a fall about 7 [7].
Because jumpers touch down flat on a steep slope: the landing hill is steepest exactly in the landing zone and only flattens afterwards [5]. It does hurt measurably nonetheless — peak force ranges between 1.1 and 5.3 body weights per foot and rises with flight time [3]. The telemark is the technique that spreads that load [2].
Among acute injuries, knee ligament injuries and concussions lead the list; the knee is the most common injury site [6]. The mechanism sits in the landing: high ground reaction forces, internal rotation at the knee, and rotation, flexion and abduction at the hip [2][3]. Overuse complaints, by contrast, arise mostly in dry-land training [6].
What Goes Wrong on the Small Hill: Common Faults and Where They Start