The Way of Marit Bjoergen to Becoming the Most Successful Athlete at Winter Olympics Ever
At 2018 Olympic Games in PyeongChang, cross-country skier Marit Bjoergen already won 3 medals and turned into the most successful Winter Olympian of all time, having 13 medals in her collection. Having won 7 gold medals, the athlete has more gold Olympic medals than any other female Winter Olympian. Moreover, being 37 years and 333 days old, Marit became the second oldest Olympic champion after Raisa Smetanina, who was 39 years 354 days old, when she claimed gold in 1992.
Marit Bjoergen poster
However, Marit shared that she had no time to think about her record: “When you're an athlete and still racing you're looking forward and not thinking about what you've done. You're just looking forward to the next race and focus on that. Like I said before, when I've finished skiing I'll look behind me and see what I will have done”.
Bjoergen is a real phenomenon, whose victories weren’t just luck, but the results of hard work and fantastic talent. So, let’s find out a little bit more about this Norwegian cross-country skier.
Early Years and Personal Life
Marit Bjoergen Print
Marit Bjoergen was born on March 21, 1980, in Trondheim, Norway. She started racing at the age of 7. The athlete told that she didn’t lose any cross-country race from 7 to 13. However, being a kid, she didn’t dream about winning Olympic Games.
At 19, Marit debuted at the World Cup, but her best result was the 33rd place. 2002 was the breakout year for the skier. She became a silver medalist of Salt Lake City Olympics in the relay and since then, her career started to develop pretty fast.
In 2015-16 season, Bjoergen was away from sports in order to give birth to her son Marius from her partner Fred Borre Lundberg, 4-time Olympic medalist in Nordic Combined discipline. But, she quickly returned to the form and returned to competitions in November 2016.
World Cup
Marit Bjoergen
Bjoergen is the most successful sprinter in cross-country World Cup history. She started to compete at the World Cup event in 1999. However, she gained her first victory in Duesseldorf in 2002. Since then, her results became better and better with every year. In 2003/2004 season, she became an overall silver medalist.
The skier won the overall World Cup titles 4 times in 2005, 2006, 2012 and 2015. Moreover, she earned 5 titles in sprint and 3 titles in distance. In overall, she is the winner of 112 individual and 29 team World Cup events. She was on the podiums 35 times in team events and 178 times in individual ones.
World Championships
Marit Bjoergen
Marit Bjoergen is 18-time winner of the World Championships. She gained 12 victories in individual and 6 wins in team events. The cross-country skier earned her first gold medal in 2003 in Val di Fiemme, competing in individual sprint.
In 2005 Obersdorf, the athlete won 30 km classical, team sprint and 4 × 5 km relay, became a silver medalist in double pursuit and the bronze winner of 10 km free event. At 2011 World Championships, Bjoergen won gold medals in sprint, 10 km classic, 15 km pursuit and 4 × 5 km relay as well as a silver one in 30km freestyle.
2013 World Championships also brought several medals to Marit. She won individual sprint, the double pursuit, 4 × 5 km relay, 30 km and gained a silver medal in 10 km freestyle.
Olympic Games
Marit Bjoergen poster
Marit Bjoergen at 2014 Winter Olympics Poster
In order to become the most successful Winter Olympian, Marit Broergen participated in 5 Olympic Games from 2002 to 2018 and won 13 medals at them. In 2002, she earned her first Olympic medal, silver in 4 × 5 km relay. The 2006 Games in Turin also brought her silver, but in 10 km individual.
The great results of Marit at Winter Olympics started in 2010, where she won medals in 5 of 6 events she participated in. She was 3-time gold medalist in pursuit, sprint and 4 × 5 km relay, a silver medalist in 30 km and bronze medalist in 10 km individual.
At 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, the athlete continued her tradition of winning multiple events and claimed gold in pursuit, 30 km and team sprint.
The 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang also brought 3 medals to Marit. She won gold in 4 × 5 km relay, silver in pursuit and bronze in 10 km individual.
So, Marit Bjoergen is a really great athlete, who has already gone in history of her country, World Championships, World Cup and Olympic Games. She is a great example of a talented and hard-working person, who reaches her aims despite all the obstacles.
