Runner-up Markus Mueller of Austria, left, congratulates winner Robert Johansson of Norway after the first day of competition at the Marshfield Dickinson Pine Mountain Continental Cup meet Friday, February 21, 2025, at Pine Mountain in Iron Mountain, Michigan. (Dave Kallmann photo)

IRON MOUNTAIN — Norway’s Robert Johansson, a former Olympic champion, took first place in today’s opening competition of the FIS Continental Cup at Pine Mountain, soaring 453 feet and 446 feet in the two-round event.

Manuel Fettner of Austria had the best effort on a breezy, sunny afternoon at Giant Pine, setting a new hill record of 461 feet on his first jump. Fettner started from a lower gate on his second jump by his coach’s request and turned in a 410-foot leap, nudging him into fourth place.

Kiwanis Ski Club President Nick Blagec said the performances today were spectacular. “Unreal, best jumping I’ve ever seen. The first round was unbelievable, about 15 to 20 really, really good jumps,” he said.

“I’ve never seen that in 30 years. We’re getting down to the nitty-gritty now, the skiers are all loving the hill. I’m really looking forward to tomorrow,” he added.

Johansson, 34, was a gold medal winner in the large hill team event in the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea. Fettner, 39, also has an Olympic gold medal earned in the large hill team event in 2022 in Beijing, China.

Johansson’s previous best finish at Pine Mountain was third place in 2012. “It was a very nice day here in Iron Mountain — I haven’t been here since 2016 — to start the weekend,” he said.

Competitions will continue with two events Saturday and another Sunday. Competitive rounds begin at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.

Second place today went to 22-year-old Markus Mueller of Austria with distances of 433 feet and 430 feet. “My day was great; the hill is very well prepared and it is a lot of fun to jump here,” Mueller said.

Third-place finisher Markus Eisenbichler, 33, of Germany, sailed 423 feet and 436 feet.

A year ago, Eisenbichler flew 456 feet at Pine Mountain, sharing a hill record set during the same meet by Jonas Schuster, 21, of Austria. Fettner’s 461-foot effort now eclipses that mark and stands 11 feet shy of the all-time leap set in 2020 by Austria’s Clemens Aigner before a new scaffold was erected at the storied jumping site.

Aigner, 32, placed eighth in today’s competition, recording distances of 427 feet and 402 feet.

Slovenia’s Zak Mogel was fifth, followed by Fredrik Villumstad of Norway and Maciej Kot of Poland. Schuster placed ninth and 23-year-old Andrew Urlaub of Eau Claire, Wis., cracked the top 10 with leaps of 435 feet and 402 feet.