Johnny Spillane (born November 24, 1980) is an American athlete who competes in

Nordic combined Nordic combined is a winter sport in which athletes compete in cross-country skiing (sport), cross-country skiing and ski jumping. The Nordic combined at the Winter Olympics has been held since the first 1924 Winter Olympics, Winter Olympics in ...

, a combination event consisting of

ski jumping Ski jumping is a winter sport in which competitors aim to achieve the farthest jump after sliding down on their skis from a specially designed curved ramp. Along with jump length, competitor's aerial style and other factors also affect the final ...

and

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

. Spillane is a world champion and three-time Olympic silver medalist. He announced his retirement from Nordic combined on April 18, 2013.

Early life

Spillane was born to Jim and Nancy Spillane on November 24, 1980. He was raised in Steamboat Springs,

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

, and graduated from the Lowell Whiteman School. For the first couple years, he used alpine skis on jumps, not getting his first pair of jumping skis until he was 13.

Athletic career

Spillane made the United States team for the

1998 Winter Olympics The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially known as the and commonly known as Nagano 1998 (), were a winter multi-sport event held from 7 to 22 February 1998, mainly in Nagano, Nagano, Nagano, Nagano Prefecture, Japan, with some events ...

in Nagano,

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, but did not compete in any events. The next year at the 1999 World Championships he placed 32nd in the individual event and 37th in sprint. Two years later, at the 2001 World Championships, he placed 32nd again in the individual event but vaulted to 14th place in the sprint event. At his second Olympics, the 2002 Games in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, he finished 32nd in both sprint and individual events. Spillane won his first championship in

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, securing first place and the gold medal in the 7.5 km sprint event at the World Championships in

Val di Fiemme 300px, Location of the Fiemme Valley in Trentino. 300px, The Passo_Lusia.html" ;"title="Lagorai seen from Passo Lusia">Lagorai seen from Passo Lusia. Fiemme Valley (, ) is a valley in the Trentino Provinces of Italy, province, i.e. the southern ...

. In so doing, he became the first American athlete to win a gold medal at the

FIS Nordic World Ski Championships The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships is a biennial Nordic skiing event organized by the International Ski Federation (FIS). The World Championships was started in 1925 for men and opened for women's participation in 1954. World Championship eve ...

. However, an injury prevented him from defending his title at the 2005 Championships. At the

2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics (), officially the XX Olympic Winter Games () and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February in Turin, Italy. This marked the second time Italy had hosted the Winter O ...

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, Spillane finished a disappointing tenth in the 7.5 km sprint and 30th in the individual. World Championships in

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

and

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

would continue to be disappointing for him as he placed no higher than 16th in any event. Spillane's coaches reported that although he struggled in the latter half of the 2009 season, they expected him to be ready and competitive for the

2010 Winter Olympics The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XXI Olympic Winter Games () and also known as Vancouver 2010 (), were an international winter multi-sport event held from February 12 to 28, 2010 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with ...

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

2010 Winter Olympics

At the

, in

, Spillane competed in three events. In his first event, the 10 km individual normal hill event, Spillane won the silver medal – the first American medal in the sport of Nordic Combined, and only the third American medal to be earned in any Nordic sport. After the ski jumping portion of the event, Finnish competitor Janne Ryynänen was in the lead. Spillane,

Jason Lamy-Chappuis Jason Lamy-Chappuis (born September 9, 1986) is a Franco-American former ski jumper and cross-country skier who has represented France in Nordic combined ski events between 2002 and 2015, then in the 2017-18 season. Born in the United States, w ...

, and a number of other skiers raced hard to make up the difference with Ryyänen in the cross-country portion of the event. In the middle of the last lap, after Norihito Kobayashi attempted a breakaway and was caught, Spillane took a strong lead. However, he had overexerted himself and slowed down after entering the stadium where the race was to finish. Lamy-Chappuis was able to catch up and pass him in the final stretch. The .4 second difference between their times is the closest finish in the history of Nordic Combined events at the Olympics. Despite the near win, Spillane told media afterwards that he was happy to have won any medal. In his second event, the 4×5 team event, Spillane helped earn America's second medal, another silver. In his third event, the 10 km individual large hill, Spillane won the silver medal, finishing behind fellow American

Bill Demong William Demong (born March 29, 1980, in Vermontville, New York) is an American former Nordic combined skier and Olympic gold medalist. Demong is a five-time Olympian, having competed in Nagano, Salt Lake City, Torino, Vancouver and Sochi. Caree ...

Post skiing career

Starting with the

2014 Winter Olympics The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially called the XXII Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Sochi 2014 (), were an international winter multi-sport event that was held from 7 to 23 February 2014 in Sochi, Russia. Opening ro ...

, Spillane has called

events for

NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division for NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, that is responsible for sports broadcasts on their broadcast network NBC, the Cable television, cable channels NBC owns, and on Peacock (streaming service) ...

and

Olympic Channel Olympic Channel is an over-the-top Internet television service operated by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). It was launched on August 21, 2016, alongside the closing of the 2016 Summer Olympics. The service aims to maintain year-round ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Spillane, Johnny 1980 births American male Nordic combined skiers Living people Nordic combined skiers at the 2002 Winter Olympics Nordic combined skiers at the 2006 Winter Olympics Nordic combined skiers at the 2010 Winter Olympics Olympic Nordic combined skiers for the United States Olympic silver medalists for the United States in Nordic combined FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in Nordic combined Medalists at the 2010 Winter Olympics American media personalities 21st-century American sportsmen