Sara Takanashi, the favorite for the gold medal in the inaugural Olympic women's normal hill ski jump on Tuesday night, was kept off the podium after a disappointing effort at the RusSki Gorki Jumping Center.
After winning 10 of the 13 World Cup events this season, Takanashi, 17, was a prohibitive favorite to claim Japan's second gold in any winter sport since the 1998 Nagano Games, but she came in fourth.
Germany's Carina Vogt claimed the gold with a total of 247.4 points. Austria's Daniela Iraschko-Stolz took the silver with 246.2, while France's Coline Mattel earned the bronze with 245.2.