Torbjørn Løkken (born 28 June 1963) is a Norwegian

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 ...

skier who competed from 1985 to 1990. He won two medals at the

1987 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1987 took place 11–21 February 1987 in Oberstdorf, West Germany. Following the domination of the skating technique at the previous championships, the International Ski Federation (FIS) introduced separate c ...

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 ...

with a gold in the 15 km individual and a silver in the 3×5 km team events. Løkken also competed at the

1988 Winter Olympics The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Calgary 1988 were a multi-sport event held from February 13 to 28, 1988, with Calgary, Calgary, Alberta as the main host city. This marks the m ...

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

, finishing sixth in the individual and fourth in the team events. He also won the Nordic combined event at the 1988

Holmenkollen ski festival The Holmenkollen Ski Festival ( or ) is a traditional annual Nordic skiing event in Holmenkollen, Oslo, Norway. The full official name of the event is Holmenkollen FIS World Cup Nordic. History It takes place in March and has been arranged every ...

and earned four additional individual victories in his career from 1986 to 1988. He took a year off after the 1987–88 season, and attempted a comeback in 1989–90, but quit midway through the season, claiming he no longer had the motivation to compete. He has his education from the

Norwegian School of Sport Sciences The Norwegian School of Sport Sciences (, NIH) is a public university located at Sognsvann in Oslo, Norway. It has the national responsibility for education and research related within sport sciences. It provides education at the Bachelor, Mast ...

. After retiring from the sport, Løkken had a troubled life. In November 2007, he came forward and revealed that he was a recovering

alcoholic Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World Hea ...

and

drug addict Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can ...

, having abused

alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...

, pills and eventually

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...

for 15 years.Dagbladet: Drikking, piller, narkotika og kjøring i rus
(Norwegian)

References

External links

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Holmenkollen winners since 1892
– click Vinnere for downloadable pdf file 1963 births Nordic combined skiers at the 1988 Winter Olympics Holmenkollen Ski Festival winners Norwegian male Nordic combined skiers Living people FIS Nordic Combined World Cup winners Norwegian School of Sport Sciences alumni FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in Nordic combined 20th-century Norwegian sportsmen {{Nordic-skiing-bio-stub