WHY I...Ski Jump

24, ski jumper based in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia

- Nita Englund

”I grew up cross-country skiing in Wisconsin. I can’t even remember my first jump, because I was always building small hills out of snow in the woods for fun when I was little. Once I was old enough, I’d hop into a van on weekends with other kids from my town and ski in the area. The steeper the slope, the more I liked it. I thought I’d quit once I went off a 120-meter-high jump, but I think that was actually the turning point: I became addicted to the feeling of flying.