Thomas Wassberg
Encyclopedia
Thomas Wassberg (born 27 March 1956 in Lennartsfors
, Värmland
) is a Swedish
former cross-country skier. A fast skating style - push for every leg - is still called "Wassberg" after him in several countries.
He won the World Cup
in 1977. In 1980 he received Bragdmedaljen
, an award given to the best Swedish sportsman/sportswoman each year. He did however refuse to accept the award in protest to an earlier decision by the award committee.
Wassberg won four gold Medals at the Winter Olympics: in 15 km (1980), 50 km (1984), and the 4 x 10 km relay (1984, 1988). At the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships
, he earned three golds (50 km: 1982, 30 km: 1987, and 4 x 10 km: 1987), three silvers (15 km: 1985, 1987; 50 km (1987), and one bronze (4 x 10 km: 1985). Additionally, Wassberg won the 50 km at the Holmenkollen ski festival
three times (1980, 1982 and 1987) and the 15 km twice (1979, 1985).
At the 1980 Winter Olympics
in Lake Placid
, Wassberg edged out Finland
's Juha Mieto
by 0.01 seconds in the 15 km, the closest cross-country skiing
race in Olympic history. This incident led the FIS
to change their timing to the nearest one-tenth of a second. At the 1984 Winter Olympics
, Wassberg beat out fellow Swede Gunde Svan
by 4.9 seconds in the 50 km, the closest margin of victory ever in that event until Giorgio Di Centa
(Italy
) edged out Yevgeny Dementyev (Russia
) by 0.8 seconds at the 2006 Winter Olympics
though the 2006 event was a mass start event while the 1984 event was an interval start event.
Wassberg was awarded the Holmenkollen medal
in 1980.
Årjäng Municipality
Årjäng Municipality is a municipality in Värmland County in west central Sweden, bordering Norway. Its seat is located in the town of Årjäng....
, Värmland
Värmland
' is a historical province or landskap in the west of middle Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Dalsland, Dalarna, Västmanland and Närke. It is also bounded by Norway in the west. Latin name versions are Vermelandia and Wermelandia. Although the province's land originally was Götaland, the...
) is a Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
former cross-country skier. A fast skating style - push for every leg - is still called "Wassberg" after him in several countries.
He won the World Cup
FIS Cross-Country World Cup
The FIS Cross-Country World Cup is an annual cross-country skiing competition, arranged by the International Ski Federation since 1981. The competition was arranged unofficially between 1973 and 1981, although it received provisional recognition on the 31...
in 1977. In 1980 he received Bragdmedaljen
Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal
The Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal is an annual award "for the most significant Swedish sports achievement of the year". It has been awarded by a jury led by the Swedish morning paper Svenska Dagbladet since 1925. According to its statutes the Medal may be awarded in November or December to either...
, an award given to the best Swedish sportsman/sportswoman each year. He did however refuse to accept the award in protest to an earlier decision by the award committee.
Wassberg won four gold Medals at the Winter Olympics: in 15 km (1980), 50 km (1984), and the 4 x 10 km relay (1984, 1988). At the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships
FIS Nordic World Ski Championships
The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships have been held in various numbers and types of events since 1925 for men and since 1954 for women. Championship events include nordic skiing's three disciplines: cross-country skiing, ski jumping, and nordic combined...
, he earned three golds (50 km: 1982, 30 km: 1987, and 4 x 10 km: 1987), three silvers (15 km: 1985, 1987; 50 km (1987), and one bronze (4 x 10 km: 1985). Additionally, Wassberg won the 50 km at the Holmenkollen ski festival
Holmenkollen ski festival
The Holmenkollen Ski Festival is a traditional annual Nordic skiing event in Holmenkollen, Oslo, Norway. The full official name of the event is Holmenkollen FIS World Cup Nordic. It takes place in March and has been arranged every year since 1892, except for 1898 and during World War II...
three times (1980, 1982 and 1987) and the 15 km twice (1979, 1985).
At the 1980 Winter Olympics
1980 Winter Olympics
The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIII Olympic Winter Games, was a multi-sport event which was celebrated from 13 February through 24 February 1980 in Lake Placid, New York, United States of America. This was the second time the Upstate New York village hosted the Games, after 1932...
in Lake Placid
Lake Placid, New York
Lake Placid is a village in the Adirondack Mountains in Essex County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a population of 2,638....
, Wassberg edged out Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
's Juha Mieto
Juha Mieto
Juha Iisakki Mieto . is a former Finnish cross country skier who competed during the 1970s and 1980s. He won five medals at the Winter Olympics...
by 0.01 seconds in the 15 km, the closest cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...
race in Olympic history. This incident led the FIS
International Ski Federation
The International Ski Federation, known by its name in French, Fédération Internationale de Ski is the main international organisation for ski sports...
to change their timing to the nearest one-tenth of a second. At the 1984 Winter Olympics
1984 Winter Olympics
The 1984 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIV Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated from 8–19 February 1984 in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. Other candidate cities were Sapporo, Japan; and Gothenburg, Sweden...
, Wassberg beat out fellow Swede Gunde Svan
Gunde Svan
Gunde Svan is a former Swedish cross-country skier and auto racing driver. During his career he won a total of four gold, one silver and one bronze medals at the Winter Olympics...
by 4.9 seconds in the 50 km, the closest margin of victory ever in that event until Giorgio Di Centa
Giorgio Di Centa
Giorgio Di Centa is an Italian cross country skier who won two gold medals at the 2006 Winter Olympics, including the individual 50 km freestyle race...
(Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
) edged out Yevgeny Dementyev (Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
) by 0.8 seconds at the 2006 Winter Olympics
2006 Winter Olympics
The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...
though the 2006 event was a mass start event while the 1984 event was an interval start event.
Wassberg was awarded the Holmenkollen medal
Holmenkollen medal
The Holmenkollen medal is Norwegian skiing's highest award for competitors. It signifies top placings in international championships and other international events, including the Holmenkollen events....
in 1980.