Pirkanmaa, Finland – Olympic ski jumping champion Matti Nykanen was given 16 months in jail on Tuesday as a sentence for attacking his wife with a knife on Christmas Day 2009.nThe district court in Pirkanmaa found that the charges against Nykanen, who is the process of getting a divorce from his wife, Mervi Tapola, were aggravated due to the use of a knife. Nykanen’s wife was found with cuts and scratches when police arrived at their home in southern Finland, which Nykanen attributed to a struggle over the knife. He was also ordered to pay his estranged wife approximately $13,000 in restitution and legal fees.

Nykanen’s lawyer has indicated that he will appeal the sentence.

Now 47 years old, Nykanen has a history of domestic violence convictions. In 2006, three days after being released after serving a sentence for a 2004 stabbing incident, he was sentenced to four months in prison for another attack on his wife. He has four gold medals and one silver in ski jumping to his credit. Three of his gold medals were earned at the 1998 Games in Calgary, Canada.