For female ski jumpers, chance to compete remains elusive

Coach Jochen Danenberg was walking toward the bottom of the jumping hill at the Whistler Olympic Park on Friday when he spotted a familiar face across the fence. Alissa Johnson, an American ski jumper who holds 10th place in the world rankings for women, was standing on the side reserved for spectators.

"Where are your skis?" Danenberg, the American coach, asked as he leaned over to give Johnson a kiss on the cheek.

She arched an eyebrow and kissed him back. "Yeah, right?" she said.

Johnson would have loved to have strapped on her skis and taken a shot at the big hill Friday, but women ski jumpers are not competing at the Vancouver Olympics. Despite years of protests and a court case that went all the way to the Canadian Supreme Court, the International Olympic Committee barred women from competing in ski jumping, arguing that the sport is too early in its development to field enough qualified competitors.

Instead, Johnson, who is 22, watched as a sister and supporter, cheering on her younger brother, Anders, a member of the men's team, as he competed in the qualification round on the large hill. Anders Johnson, 20, failed to qualify for the medal round on Saturday after jumping 117 meters to finish in 42nd place, two positions below the cut. He is recovering from surgery in August to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

As an elite competitor herself, Alissa Johnson's hectic schedule nearly prevented her from getting here. Last Saturday, she was in Austria competing in a Continental Cup, the highest level of competition for female jumpers. She finished sixth. In a few days, she will leave for Japan to compete in another Continental Cup. "It was a lot of trouble coming here, but I'm glad I came," she said.

Johnson also watched her brother jump in Turin in 2006. That time, she said, there were tears. But this time, "It's not as hard," she said. "I keep thinking I'm going to get upset, but it hasn't happened. I think you're only allowed one allotment of tears for each thing, and I used mine up last time."

This year, the sadness seems to have been replaced by a slow-burning anger, although Johnson insisted this was not true. Still, she fumed when she spotted a high-level official with the International Ski Federation in the crowd on Friday. "I have to ask myself, do these guys have daughters and wives?" she said.

Ski jumping and Nordic combined, which includes jumping, are the only sports in the Winter Games that do not have a women's event. Female ski jumpers have chafed at the suggestion that their sport is not competitive, saying that snowboard cross and ski cross have far fewer elite competitors but were recently added by the I.O.C.

Alissa's mother, Chris Johnson, said it was difficult balancing support for her son with sympathy for her daughter. "In 2006, when Anders walked in the opening ceremonies, it was one of the most proud moments of my life," Chris Johnson said. During the ceremony, however, Alissa called on her cell phone. Her team had just won gold in a European event, but instead of celebrating, she was crying. "Why can't we be there?" she asked her mother.

"You can't wallow in that," Chris Johnson said. "You have to move past it." That is why she says she is focusing her attention on getting women included in the 2014 Games in Sochi. "Could you imagine, how wonderful, to have both of your children competing in jumping and competing on an equal playing field?"