Frode Estil (born 31 May 1972) is a retired Norwegian cross-country skier. He lives in

Meråker Municipality Meråker is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Stjørdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Midtbygda which is about west of Storlien in Sweden and east of the town of Stjø ...

with his wife Grete whom he married in the summer of 2001. They have two sons, Bernhard, born in August 2002, and Konrad. Estil was classical specialist and also a specialist at succeeding in World Championships and Olympics. While Estil only won four World Cup races, he won one individual Olympic Gold and one individual World Championship gold. In addition, he won three team events in the World Championships and another team gold in the Olympics.

World Cup

Estil's first World Cup victory was in 1999 in the 30 km event at

Davos Davos (, ; or ; ; Old ) is an Alpine resort town and municipality in the Prättigau/Davos Region in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has a permanent population of (). Davos is located on the river Landwasser, in the Rhaetian ...

.
FIS World Cup results His best standing at the end of a season was during 2001/02 when he finished fifth. Estil has been competing in the World Cup since 1995/96, in which he finished the season in 42nd place, and in 1996/97 he finished 63rd. The year after however he jumped up to 12th. The following two years he finished 19th and 12th. Finally, in the 2000/01 season, he finished inside the top ten of the world, finishing eight. The next season (2001/02) was even better for Estil, not only did he get married in the summer but he finished in fifth place overall, his ever highest overall ranking. The next two seasons he finished in sixth. After the 2002/03 season he stopped competing in the sprint events after finishing the season in 58th, he had finished the sprint seasons in 48th (1996/97), 18th (1997/98), 18th (1998/99), 32nd (1999/00), and 39th in 2001/02. In 2003/04 he finished third in the distance standings. 2004/05 was a poor season, finishing 14th in the distance, and 25th in the overall. Estil finished the 2005/06 season in ninth place in the FIS World Cup standings, 456 points behind winner Tobias Angerer. Estil finished fourth in the distance, 420 points behind Angerer, and again did not compete in the sprints. Estil has had 18 World Cup podium finishes. Four of them in the first place, six in second place and eight in third place. His wins came in 1999/00, 2002/03 and two in 2003/04. The most podium finishes he has had in a single season was in 2002/03, where he had four (one win, two second, and one third). He had three podiums in the seasons either side of that season. All of his wins have been in the classic style, except one double pursuit (in which the first half of the race is in the classical technique). The 15 km is his most successful event in terms of numbers of podium finishes. Through the years he has had one win, three second places and three third places. His most successful event in terms of wins is the 30 km, where he has had three victories (also one second and one third).

World Championships

Estil's first gold medal in an international championship was in the relay in the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2001 in Lahti, where he also took silver in the 30 km. At the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2003, held 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 ...

, Estil won a gold in the 4 × 10 km relay and bronze in the 15 km and 30 km. At the 2005 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in

Oberstdorf Oberstdorf (Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Oberschdorf'') is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality and skiing and hiking town in Germany, located in the Allgäu region of the Bavarian Alps. It is the southernmost settlement in German ...

, Estil won gold in the 50 km race, and the 4 × 10 km relay. In the 50 km race he won in a time of 2:30:10.1, 2005 World Championship Gold beating

Anders Aukland Anders Aukland (born 12 September 1972 in Tønsberg) is a retired professional Norwegian cross-country skier who won both Olympic and World Championship gold medals. He lives in Oslo. He competed in the last race of his career on April 2, 2023. ...

by 0.7 seconds, and Odd-Bjørn Hjelmeset came third making it a Norwegian sweep. A characteristic of Estil is to start slow and then come through the pack towards the end of the race, he was 23rd after 12.5 km, and 11th after 27.5 km, but by 42.5 km he was third, and came through to win. In the relay, Norway (Hjelmeset, Estil, biathlete Lars Berger, and Tore Ruud Hofstad) won, with Germany second and Russia third. 2005 World Championship relay Gold Norway finished 17.7 seconds ahead of the Germans, with Estil skiing Norway's second fastest leg (behind Berger). He also won a bronze medal in the 15 km + 15 km double pursuit, 2005 World Championship bronze in a time of 1:19:21.3, 0.8 seconds behind winner Vincent Vittoz, and losing silver to Giorgio Di Centa in a

photo finish A photo finish occurs in a sporting race when multiple competitors cross the finishing line at nearly the same time. As the naked eye may not be able to determine which of the competitors crossed the line first, a photo or video taken at the fini ...

. At the 2007 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in

Sapporo is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in Hokkaido, Japan. Located in the southwest of Hokkaido, it lies within the alluvial fan of the Toyohira River, a tributary of the Ishikari River. Sapporo is the capital ...

, Estil won only one medal. He lost the gold at the finish line of the 50 km event to fellow Norwegian Odd-Bjørn Hjelmeset. Estil has nine World Championship medals as of the Sapporo championships with four gold, two silver, and three bronze.

Olympics

Estil has competed in two

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (), also known as the Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were held i ...

. In the 2002 Games Estil won golds in the 10 km + 10 km combined pursuit, and the 4 × 10 km relay; and won a silver in the 15 km. In 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 ...

he won a silver medal in the 15 km + 15 km double pursuit. In the 10 km + 10 km combined pursuit, Estil tied with fellow Norwegian

Thomas Alsgaard Thomas Alsgaard (born 10 January 1972) is a Norwegian former professional cross-country skier. Alsgaard is regarded by many as the best performer of the freestyle technique (skating) in cross-country skiing and many of today's best skiers have st ...

for second place, with

Johann Mühlegg Johann Mühlegg (born 8 November 1970 in Marktoberdorf, Germany) is a former top level cross-country skier who competed in international competitions first representing Germany and then Spain, after becoming a Spanish citizen in 1999. He was excl ...

winning the race. However Mühlegg was found guilty of doping and disqualified by the

IOC The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based in L ...

in February 2004, therefore upgrading Estil and Alsgaard to joint gold medalists. Alsgaard and Estil clocked times of 49:48.9, 4 seconds ahead of Per Elofsson.
2002 Olympic Gold In the same Olympic Games, he also won a silver medal in the 15 km Classic race, and a gold medal in the 4 × 10 km relay together with Alsgaard, Kristen Skjeldal and

. Estil finished the 15 km race in 37:43.4, 36 seconds behind Andrus Veerpalu of

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

, and 7.4 seconds ahead of Jaak Mae also of Estonia.
2002 Olympic Silver Estil also took part in the 50 km classic, but finished ninth, in a time of 2:10:44.8, 4:22.0 behind winner Mikhail Ivanov (cross-country skier), Mikhail Ivanov of Russia.
2002 Olympic 9th At the 2006 Olympics in

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, Estil won the silver medal in the men's 15 km + 15 km double pursuit competition despite taking a fall and breaking a ski at the start of the race which put him in last place. Eugeni Dementiev of Russia won the race, 1.6 seconds ahead of Estil, who finished the race in 1:17:01.8, 0.3 seconds ahead of Pietro Piller Cottrer who came third.
2006 Olympic Silver In the same Games Estil also took part in the 15 km classical, and the 50 km freestyle mass start, but finished 17th and 28th respectively. Estil's results mirrored those of the Norwegian cross-country team who failed to win a single Gold medal in Turin, owing to stomach illness and waxing mistakes made by Norway's eight man strong service team. Estil's Olympic medals include two golds and two silvers..

Medical

Estil has a high

hemoglobin Hemoglobin (haemoglobin, Hb or Hgb) is a protein containing iron that facilitates the transportation of oxygen in red blood cells. Almost all vertebrates contain hemoglobin, with the sole exception of the fish family Channichthyidae. Hemoglobin ...

level, and has received a blood-certificate by the FIS, so that when his blood is tested the maximum hemoglobin allowed to race is 17.5 grams hemoglobin per 100 ml of blood, compared to 17 grams for men and 16 grams per 100 ml for athletes without this certificate.

Legacy

*Estil has had a hill in

Soldier Hollow Soldier Hollow is a cross-country ski venue located at the mouth of a hollow of the same name about southeast of Salt Lake City in Wasatch Mountain State Park in northwestern Wasatch County, Utah, United States. The venue was created for th ...

, Utah, United States, (where the cross country skiing and biathlon events of the 2002 Winter Olympics took place) named after him after his three medals. *Frode Estil was named Norwegian sportsman of the year in 2001. *Estil received the Holmenkollen Medal in 2007 (Shared with

Simon Ammann Simon Ammann (; born 25 June 1981) is a Swiss ski jumper. He is one of the most successful athletes in the history of the sport, having won four individual Winter Olympic gold medals in 2002 Winter Olympics, 2002 and 2010 Winter Olympics, 2010. ...

, Odd-Bjørn Hjelmeset,

King Harald V Harald V (, ; born 21 February 1937) has been King of Norway since 1991. A member of the House of Glücksburg, Harald was the third child and only son of King Olav V of Norway and Princess Märtha of Sweden. He was second in the line of succ ...

, and

Queen Sonja Sonja (born Sonja Haraldsen; 4 July 1937) is Queen of Norway as the wife of King Harald V. Sonja and the then Crown Prince Harald had dated for nine years prior to their marriage in 1968. They had kept their relationship a secret due to the ...

Cross-country skiing results

All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation (FIS).

Olympic Games

* 4 medals – (2 gold, 2 silver)

World Championships

* 9 medals – (4 gold, 2 silver, 3 bronze)

World Cup

Season standings

Individual podiums

* 4 victories * 20 podiums

Team podiums

* 9 victories – (9 ) * 16 podiums – (15 , 1 )

Notes and references

External links

*
Frode Estil's official website

Holmenkollen medal presented to Estil and Hjelmeset
- Accessed March 21, 2007
2007 Holmenkollen medalists announced
- Accessed March 18, 2007.
Short video of Frode being wished good luck by the Leeds manager
{{DEFAULTSORT:Estil, Frode 1972 births Living people People from Lierne People from Meråker Cross-country skiers at the 2002 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 2006 Winter Olympics Holmenkollen medalists Norwegian male cross-country skiers Olympic cross-country skiers for Norway Olympic gold medalists for Norway Olympic silver medalists for Norway Olympic medalists in cross-country skiing FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in cross-country skiing Medalists at the 2006 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics Skiers from Trøndelag 21st-century Norwegian sportsmen