BRATTLEBORO, Vt. — A 24-year-old Slovenian bested two dozen of the world’s best up-and-coming ski jumpers Sunday to win the Harris Hill Ski Jump’s annual namesake Fred Harris Memorial Tournament.
Gasper Bartol won the event in front of a crowd of several thousand spectators, with fellow Slovenians David Krapez, 22, second and Zak Silih, 20, third.
“This is the first win in this season for me,” said Bartol, who was competing in America for the first time and finds English as challenging as the weekend’s snow-melting temperatures. “The hill was a little bumpy and slow, but it’s OK. The feelings are really good — I’m happy.”
The nearly century-old event featured athletes from the United 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 94 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. Many of the competitors are scheduled to go on and compete at the 2016 Junior Nationals Feb. 24-27 in Salisbury, Conn.
Harris Hill boasts a snowmaking system with 2,000 feet of pipe, 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.
Photo by Dana Sprague
Gasper Bartol, 24, of Slovenia won Harris Hill Ski Jump’s annual namesake Fred Harris Memorial Tournament on Sunday in Brattleboro, Vt.
