October 4, 2005 – Canada’s Atsuko Tanaka followed her teammate Katie Willis’ path to the top step of the podium by winning a gold medal at an international ski jumping event. The 13-year-old Calgarian finished on top against the best women ski jumping athletes at a summer Continental Cup event in Park City, Utah on Sunday evening.

In August, Tanaka’s teammate, 14-year-old Katie Willis, landed in the history books as not only the youngest athlete, but also the first Canadian woman to win a gold medal in international ski jumping. Tanaka finished fourth in that event. Both athletes are competing against women nearly twice their age.

“I am just shocked and so excited,” said Tanaka immediately following the medal presentation. “This is so good for our sport. We have been training really hard and it is such a great feeling to see our team stand on top of the podium.”

The Calgary native, who has been competing internationally since the first Continental Cup event for women took off in 2004, scored a total of 233.5 points to knock off the world’s best, as 25 athletes from nine different countries suited up.

Tanaka was sandwiched on the podium between two American athletes. Jessica Jerome finished second with a total of 231.5 points, while her teammate, Lindsey-M Van, landed in the bronze-medal position with a total of 230 points.

“This has been a tremendous summer for our national program,” said Brent Morrice, president, Ski Jumping Canada. “Our young athletes are landing the best results we’ve had in years. Our men’s team have all met the Olympic qualification criteria, and it is clear that year’s of hard work are really starting to pay off. We are going to continue to pursue excellence, with the ultimate goal of having a Canadian ski jumping athlete standing on the Olympic podium by 2010.”