Uhrmann leads qualifiers for normal hill event

(AP) — Gregor Schlierenzauer of Austria had the longest jump in qualifying for the normal hill event Friday, and Michael Uhrmann of Germany led a group of 41 ski jumpers who secured a spot in the first medal event of the Vancouver Olympics.

Schlierenzauer, who was among 10 jumpers who already had qualified for Saturday's competition based on their World Cup standings, soared 107 meters for his best jump of the week.

In the first competitive event of the games, Uhrmann jumped 106 meters for a total score of 138.5 points for the best result among those trying to qualify.

"I have performed well the last days, and it was a good jump," said Uhrmann, who still doubted whether he can be a serious contender for medals on Saturday. Those jumpers who were already qualified used the event as a training session and opted for lower start gates for increased safety, meaning their takeoff speeds were considerably lower.

"It will be hard to fight with them," Uhrmann said. "Let's see what happens tomorrow."

Anders Johnson of the United States squeaked into the competition after equaling Choi Heung-chul of South Korea in the 40th qualifying place, meaning Saturday's event will feature 51 jumpers instead of the normal 50.

"I think the distance was right on the bubble, but my style was pretty good," Johnson said. "It was a good landing."

Ten jumpers failed to qualify, including all four Canadian entries, with Roberto Dellasega of Italy disqualified for wearing a suit that was too baggy.

This was the first top-level men's ski jump competition held on Whistler's normal hill, and Schlierenzauer's result stands as a hill record. The previous distance record here was held by Lindsey Van, the American women's world champion, who jumped 105.5 meters in 2008. Van has been part of the group of women jumpers who lobbied for the right to compete in the Olympics, but failed to be included in Vancouver.

Simon Ammann, the Swiss World Cup leader and 2002 Olympic champion, soared 109 meters in the trial round earlier Friday — which doesn't count as an official result — but then chose an even lower start gate than Schlierenzauer for the qualifying session and settled for 103 meters.

Ammann is trying to repeat his feat from the Salt Lake City Games in 2002, when he swept both individual events as a relatively unknown 20-year-old.

"My expectations are of course high," Ammann said, adding that he wasn't too concerned about matching Schlierenzauer in the qualifying round. "I try not to look too much to the others."

While Canada had a disappointing start to its home Olympics, Johnson's close call meant all three American jumpers qualified for the event.

Nick Alexander was 35th, five spots below 19-year-old Peter Frenette.

"The goal for tomorrow is one in the final (round)," U.S. coach Jochen Danneberg said. "It's really difficult and we have to be realistic. If one can do it, then it's a good result for us."

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AP Sports Writer Arnie Stapleton contributed to this report.