For a sense of what it feels like to be one of the top women jumpers in the world, check out this video that US athlete Jessica Jerome took while going off a ski jump in Utah. The “helmet cam” she wore captured the action soaring out over the landing hill and, on a separate jump, gave a bumpy, blur-your-vision look back at the jump tower as she sped down the ramp – ponytail flapping in the wind.
IOC official: 'Textbook' case of discrimination
The group of more than a dozen women ski jumpers who sued Vancouver’s organizing committee (known as VANOC) argues that their sport needs Olympic status to narrow the wide gap between the few top women ski jumpers and the rest of the pack. Led by former Salt Lake City mayor Deedee Corradini, who was instrumental in adding women’s bobsled and skeleton events to the 2002 Olympics in Utah, they point to the growth of those sports and others since being added to the Olympic roster. Philip Hersch of the Chicago Tribune wrote an interesting analysis of pole vaulting's evolution since 2000 that strongly supports the women's position. (Editor's note: This version was updated to correct an error about which women's events were added in 2002.)
