Ski jumper Jakub Janda's stunning series of triumphs in major international competitions this season has left the skiing world in disbelief.

After Janda's recent victory at the highly prestigious Four Hills Tournament in Germany and Austria, German coach Gerd Siegmund — seeing Janda, 27, virtually lying flat between his skis as he soared through the air — questioned whether he was in fact human.

"Janda's style goes beyond the limits of one's body," Siegmund said.

The German coach even hinted that the Czech jumper may have been cheating by using special shoes that would allow him to keep his skis in such an extreme position.

Sticking to his trademark cool reactions, Janda rejected the speculation.

"There's no cheating on my side. ... My ankles are simply softer than those of most other people," he told reporters before throwing in an uncharacteristic smile and a joke.

"But I'm not so soft from the ankles up."

Janda stunned the world with his sensational performances that helped him dominate in the World Cup, a series of competitions throughout the season, the yearly pinnacle of which is the Four Hills Tournament.

His impressive campaign reached its pinnacle during the four eventsthat make up the tournament in Decemberand early January.

On Jan. 6, Janda became the first Czech ski jumper in 35 years to win the Four Hills.

But he shared the title with Finland's star jumper Janne Ahonen, the first time a tie has ever happened.

The win in the prestigious event made Janda perhaps the hottest Czech medal contender for the upcoming Winter Olympics that kick off next month in Turin, Italy.

Although he is reluctant to talk about his Olympic aspirations, experts say his chances are quite high and that he could bring home a medal for Czech ski jumping. The country's last Olympic medals for ski jumping were Pavel Ploc's silver and Jiří Malec's bronze at the 1988 Calgary Olympics.

"After years, I feel there is a strong chance that another Czech jumper could win the gold at the Olympics," says Jiří Raška, who is so far the only Czech ski jumper to have earned gold at the Olympics, having triumphed in the Grenoble games in France in 1968.

Raška said the Four Hills Tournament proved that Janda was able to keep his nerves in check during intense moments of competition — an essential condition for anyone wishing to succeed in the Olympics.

Training in the air, underwater

In what German and Austrian media described as the biggest thriller in ski-jumping history, Janda and Ahonen went neck and neck for the overall win in the Four Hills Tournament, until the very last jump. Janda was jumping last in the closing competition in Bischofshofen, Austria, Jan. 6, and had to perform a long jump in order to match the Finn.

He did.

He said moments later that he actually had not focused on Ahonen's jump and only cared about his own performance.

The ability to deliver in crucial moments was the key to Janda's impressive jumps,said Slovenian coach Vasja Bajc, who has been leading Janda and the Czech team since the spring 2004.

"In the past," Bajc said, "he was thinking of how to avoid failures, rather than how to succeed."

Until last season, Janda and his teammates were virtually going from one loss to another in international races.

For example, Janda jumped only 84 meters (275.6 feet) in the Four Hills event in Bischofshofen in January 1998 and finished a lowly 57th. In contrast, Janda jumped 141 meters and 139 meters in Bischofshofen this year.

Janda said the turnaround occurred with the appointment of Bajc.

"He made me think positively," Janda said.

Under Bajc's guidance, Janda finished nine times on the podium in the World Cup series last season and won one World Cup competition. Also last season, he became the first Czech ski jumper in 12 years to win medals — silver and bronze — at the World Championship.

Another reason behind Janda's — and the team's — success: Extreme sports. During training sessions last summer, the team supplemented their workout with some parachuting and scuba diving.

"Ski jumping is also about adrenaline, and athletes need to keep a cool head before and during their performance.... Adrenaline sports helped them achieve that," Bajc explained.

Minding the car

Apart from boosting his confidence, Janda learned at the Four Hills Tournament to keep his head cool after the race as well.

Until then, Janda's major concern was to keep the yellow vest reserved for the World Cup leader.

"Being the World Cup leader is an outstanding thing for me ... so I always stole the yellow vest after the race as a souvenir," Janda said.

But, of course, this time he shared the title. So what would happen with the main prize — a Nissan off-road vehicle?