Slovenia's Domen Prevc lands big ski jump to capture gold on large hill at Milan Cortina Games

PREDAZZO, Italy (AP) — Domen Prevc of Slovenia proved his formidable ski jumping prowess in the rain Saturday, coming from behind to capture the gold medal on the men’s large hill at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

Prevc was in second place going into the final round and landed a whopping 464-foot (141.5-meter) jump — the biggest of the night — to move ahead of Japan's Ren Nikaido, who won silver, and Kacper Tomasiak of Poland, who won bronze.

Despite the points deficit he faced, Prevc said he didn't feel any pressure on his final jump and tapped into the joy he got from the sport when he took it up as a kid in the footsteps of his older siblings.

“Even for the second round, I was like, ‘do your thing, do your best, enjoy the jump and feel the air,’" he said. “When I did a really good take-off, I was super happy and I could just enjoy the air.”

Nikaido, jumping last, couldn't quite match Prevc, landing about 16 1/2 feet (5 meters) short of the mark he had set.

The three are in their first Olympics and are multiple medal winners on the Predazzo ski hill.

It was the second gold for Prevc, after the mixed team victory Tuesday that he shared with his star sister, Nika.

Nikaido won bronze medals on the men’s normal hill and in the mixed team event. Tomasiak won silver on the normal hill.

Prevc, who is one of four siblings in his famous ski jumping family to win an Olympic medal, entered the event as the favorite.

He is the world champion on the large hill — dominating events all season — and set a distance record in ski flying.

Nikaido led after the first round, with Prevc in second and Norway’s Kristoffer Eriksen Sundal in third.

Tomasiak, who is in his rookie year on the World Cup, launched a second jump that knocked Sundal off the podium.

AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Italian Army soldiers on the steps of the ramp watch Domen Prevc, of Slovenia, soaring through the air during his first round jump of the ski jumping men's large hill individual at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Kacper Tomasiak, of Poland, soars through the air during the ski jumping men's large hill individual at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Ren Nikaido, of Japan, reacts after landing his first round jump during the ski jumping men's large hill individual at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Domen Prevc, of Slovenia, reacts after his final round jump of the ski jumping men's large hill individual at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Silver medalist Ren Nikaido, of Japan, gold medalist Domen Prevc, of Slovenia, and bronze medalist Kacper Tomasiak, of Poland, pose on the podium at the end of the ski jumping men's large hill individual at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026.. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Italian Army soldiers on the steps of the ramp watch Domen Prevc, of Slovenia, soaring through the air during his first round jump of the ski jumping men's large hill individual at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The International Space Station returned to full strength with Saturday’s arrival of four new astronauts to replace colleagues who bailed early because of health concerns.

SpaceX delivered the U.S., French and Russian astronauts a day after launching them from Cape Canaveral.

Last month’s medical evacuation was NASA’s first in 65 years of human spaceflight. One of four astronauts launched by SpaceX last summer suffered what officials described as a serious health issue, prompting their hasty return. That left only three crew members to keep the place running — one American and two Russians — prompting NASA to pause spacewalks and trim research.

Moving in for eight to nine months are NASA’s Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, France’s Sophie Adenot and Russia’s Andrei Fedyaev. Meir, a marine biologist, and Fedyaev, a former military pilot, have lived up there before. During her first station visit in 2019, Meir took part in the first all-female spacewalk.

Adenot, a military helicopter pilot, is only the second French woman to fly in space. Hathaway is a captain in the U.S. Navy.

“Bonjour!” Adenot called out once the capsule docked to the space station 277 miles (446 kilometers) up. Added Meir: “Grateful to be on board, and we're ready to get to work.”

NASA has refused to divulge the identity of the astronaut who fell ill in orbit on Jan. 7 or explain what happened, citing medical privacy. The ailing astronaut and three others returned to Earth more than a month sooner than planned. They spent their first night back on Earth at the hospital before returning to Houston.

The space agency said it did not alter its preflight medical checks for their replacements.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

In this image from video provided by NASA, a SpaceX Dragon capsule carrying Americans Meir and Jack Hathaway, France’s Sophie Adenot and Russia’s Andrei Fedyaev, approaches the International Space Station for docking on Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (NASA via AP)

Crew 12 mission astronauts, from left, pilot Jack Hathaway, Russian cosmonaut Andrei Fedyaev, commander Jessica Meir and ESA astronaut Sophia Adenot, of France, leave the Operations and Checkout building before heading to pad 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, on a mission to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/John Raoux)