Calgary’s Abigail Strate earns bronze at ski jumping Summer Grand Prix in Poland

WISŁA — Calgary’s Abigail Strate won her third consecutive medal on the Summer Grand Prix on Saturday, earning bronze in the women’s large hill test in Wisla, Poland.

Strate, a graphic designer when not taking flight off hills around the world, racked up 231.4 points in her two attempts.

“I was feeling a little nervous up there on the first jump. I was just trying to focus on the things my coaches told me to do,” said the 24-year-old Strate. “I actually wasn’t very satisfied with either of the jumps today.

“I was a little messy on the takeoffs, but they still worked out and got me on the podium so I can’t complain.”

Slovenia’s Nika Prevc won gold at 247.9, while Japan’s Nozomi Maruyama earned silver with 240.5 points.

Calgary’s Nicole Maurer was the only other Canadian in the deep field, finishing 19th at 156.3.

Strate opened the Olympic campaign last weekend with a bronze medal in France. It was her first career summer ski jumping podium. She delivered a golden encore, celebrating her first international victory a day later.

She will launch off the HS134 hill in Poland with the best in the world once again on Sunday.

“My jumping has been progressing and is more consistent, so I think my whole jump is more confident than it’s ever been,” said Strate. “Each one of these successes builds on that.

“I’m loving ski jumping, and ski jumping is loving me right now, so the confidence just grows with each jump I take that works out. I am looking to keep it going.”

This is the second time in her career that Strate has had three consecutive podiums.

She closed out 2023 with a bronze and silver medal before ringing in 2024 with another bronze.

The only other podium finish in Strate’s eight-year career came when she won the bronze in Hinterzarten, Germany in January 2023. Three of Strate’s four medals in winter leaping have also come on large hills.

Ski jumping is performed in the summer on an in-run where the tracks are made from porcelain and the grass on the slope is covered with water-soaked plastic.

A core part of an athlete’s development and season-long competition schedule, summer ski jumping began in 1994 for men. Women began jumping competitively during the summer months in 2012.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 16, 2025.

The Canadian Press