Slovenian Wins Harris Hill Ski Jump For A Trophy-Retiring Third Time

SLOVENIAN WINS HARRIS HILL SKI JUMP FOR A TROPHY-RETIRING THIRD TIME

BRATTLEBORO, Vt. — A 21-year-old Slovenian bested more than 40 of the world’s top up-and-coming athletes Sunday to win the Harris Hill Ski Jump’s annual namesake Fred Harris Memorial Tournament.

Blaz Pavlic, performing for a crowd of several thousand spectators, retired the event’s Winged Ski Trophy by topping the field for a third year after victories in 2017 and 2019.

“I’ll find a place for it,” Pavlic said of the weighty trophy that has only been retired by five other jumpers in the venue’s nearly century-old history.

Chris Lamb, a 30-year-old Marlboro College graduate and two-time winner in 2010 and 2013, almost snagged the trophy by placing a close second.

“To be able to hang with the best guys here is my goal,” Lamb said.

In the men’s junior division, Canden Wilkinson, 17, of Colorado’s Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club finished first, with teammate Niklas Malacinski, 16, second.

In the women’s junior division, Adeline Swanson, 14, of Minnesota’s St. Paul Ski Club finished first, with Cara Larson, 19, of Utah’s Park City Ski & Snowboard second.

The nearly century-old event featured athletes from nine states, Austria and Slovenia shooting off New England’s only Olympic-size venue at speeds of 60 mph before soaring more than 300 feet in the air.

The late Fred Harris started it all 98 years ago when, after founding the Dartmouth Outing Club as a college student in 1909, he returned to his hometown to create the ski jump — now one of just six of its size in the country — in 1922. 

Harris’ daughter, Sandy, presented this weekend’s winners with medals. 

Harris Hill boasts a snowmaking system, so the program takes place annually regardless of ground cover in surrounding areas. More information about the ski jump can be found at www.harrishillskijump.com or the event’s Facebook and Twitter pages.

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