Birger Ruud (23 August 1911 – 13 June 1998) was a Norwegian

ski jumper 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 fin ...

and

alpine skier Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether fo ...

Career

Born in

Kongsberg Kongsberg () is a historical mining town and Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Buskerud, Viken (county), Viken Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The city is located on the river Numedalslågen at the entrance to the valley of Numedal. K ...

, Birger Ruud, with his brothers Sigmund and Asbjørn, dominated international jumping in the 1930s, winning three

world championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

in 1931, 1935 and 1937. Ruud also won the Olympic gold medal in 1932 and

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

, the first repeat winner of ski jumping gold. He also was an accomplished

, winning a bronze medal in the

combined Combined may refer to: * Alpine combined (skiing), the combination of slalom and downhill skiing as a single event ** Super combined (skiing) * Nordic combined (skiing), the combination of cross country skiing and ski jumping as a single event * T ...

at the 1935

. Ruud won the Holmenkollen ski jumping competition in 1934 and shared the Holmenkollen medal in 1937 with Olaf Hoffsbakken and

Martin P. Vangsli Martin P. Vangsli (February 1, 1903 – June 5, 1976) was a Norwegian cross-country skier Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or o ...

. In 1943, during the

German occupation of Norway The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until the ...

, Ruud was incarcerated at

Grini concentration camp '', '' no, Grini fangeleir'', location= Bærum, Viken, Norway, location map=Viken#Norway, built by=Norway, original use=Constructed as a women's prison, operated by=Nazi Germany, notable inmates=List of Grini prisoners, liberated by=Harry Söderm ...

for expressing his anti-

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...

sentiments. After his release in 1944, he joined the

Norwegian resistance movement The Norwegian resistance ( Norwegian: ''Motstandsbevegelsen'') to the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany began after Operation Weserübung in 1940 and ended in 1945. It took several forms: *Asserting the legitimacy of the exiled governmen ...

. He also competed in the

1948 Olympics 1948 Olympics may refer to: *The 1948 Winter Olympics, which were held in St. Moritz, Switzerland *The 1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an internation ...

, winning the ski jumping silver medal at age 36, though he was initially only at the Games as assistant coach of Norway’s ski jumping team. This accomplishment he personally held in the highest regard; it made him the first ski jumper to medal in three different Olympics. Twice he set ski jumping world records: 76.5 m (250.98 ft) in Odnesbakken in 1931, and 92 m (301.84 ft) in

Planica Planica () is an Alpine valley in northwestern Slovenia, extending south from the border village of Rateče, not far from another well-known ski resort, Kranjska Gora. Further south, the valley extends into the Tamar Valley, a popular hiking ...

in 1934. Later in life, Birger Ruud, with his friend Petter Hugsted, the 1948 gold medalist, participated in the creation of the Kongsberg Skiing Museum. In 1987, a bronze sculpture of Birger Ruud, by the Norwegian sculptor Per Ung, was set up in Ruud’s native town of Kongsberg, and in 1991 he was awarded the Egebergs Ærespris for his achievements in ski jumping and alpine skiing. Ruud was selected to

light Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 te ...

the

Olympic Flame The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. Several months before the Olympic Games, the Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece. This ceremony starts the Olymp ...

at the 1994 Lillehammer Olympics in Norway, but had to withdraw due to heart complications immediately before the event. He died in 1998, aged 86.

Ski jumping world records

Not recognized! Crash at world record distance.

References

External links

*
Birger Ruud's Memorial Fund

* . Alpine skiing profile * . Ski jumping profile * * * *

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruud, Birger 1911 births 1998 deaths Ski jumpers at the 1932 Winter Olympics Ski jumpers at the 1936 Winter Olympics Alpine skiers at the 1936 Winter Olympics Ski jumpers at the 1948 Winter Olympics Holmenkollen medalists Holmenkollen Ski Festival winners Norwegian male alpine skiers Olympic alpine skiers of Norway Norwegian male ski jumpers Olympic ski jumpers of Norway Olympic gold medalists for Norway Olympic silver medalists for Norway Grini concentration camp survivors Norwegian resistance members Olympic medalists in ski jumping FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in ski jumping Medalists at the 1932 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1936 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1948 Winter Olympics Kongsberg IF ski jumpers People from Kongsberg Sportspeople from Viken (county)