Name Odd Martinsen | Role Olympic athlete | |
Olympic medals Cross-Country Skiing at the 1968 Winter Olympics - Men's 30 km Similar People Bente Skari, Eero Mantyranta, Franco Nones | ||
Odd-Willy Martinsen (born 20 December 1942) is a retired Norwegian cross-country skier who competed during the 1960s and 1970s. He won three medals at the Winter Olympics, a gold in the 4×10 km relay (1968) and silvers in the 30 km (1968) and the 4×10 km relay (1976). Martinsen won five medals at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, a gold in the 4×10 km relay (1966), a silver in the 15 km (1970), and bronzes in the 15 km (1966), 30 km (1970), and 4×10 km relay (1974). At the 1969 Holmenkollen ski festival, he won the 15 km race. For his cross-country skiing successes in Norway and abroad, Martinsen received the Holmenkollen medal in 1969. Thirty-two years later, his daughter, Bente Skari, received the Holmenkollen medal, making them the only father-daughter combination to ever win the prestigious honor.
Domestically Martinsen won Norwegian titles in the 15 km (1966, 1970), 30 km (1969, 1971) and 4×10 km relay (1970, 1972–1975, 1978). After retiring from competitions he became a skiing official and headed the FIS cross-country committee in 1986–2002. At the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, he served as chief of the cross-country skiing competitions. He also founded the ski firm Finor AS, which was later run by his daughter and son.