Petter Northug
Personal information
Full name	Petter Northug Jr.
Born	(1986-01-06) 6 January 1986 (age 26) Mosvik, Norway
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Professional information
Club	Strindheim IL
Skis	Fischer
World Cup
Seasons	2005–
Wins	13
Additional podiums	12
Total podiums	25

Medal record
Men's cross country skiing
Competitor for  Norway
Olympic Games
Gold	2010 Vancouver	50 km classical
Gold	2010 Vancouver	Team sprint
Silver	2010 Vancouver	4×10 km relay
Bronze	2010 Vancouver	Individual sprint
World Championships
Gold	2007 Sapporo	4×10 km
Gold	2009 Liberec	15 km + 15 km skiathlon
Gold	2009 Liberec	50 km
Gold	2009 Liberec	4×10 km
Gold	2011 Oslo	15 km + 15 km skiathlon
Gold	2011 Oslo	50 km
Gold	2011 Oslo	4×10 km
Silver	2011 Oslo	Sprint
Silver	2011 Oslo	Team sprint

Petter Northug Jr. (born 6 January 1986) is a Norwegian cross country skier and double Olympic champion. He has 9 World Championship and Winter Olympic gold medals with 13 medals overall, and 11 individual FIS Cross-Country World Cup wins with 23 podium places.

Early life and career[link]

During his first years, Northug was generally considered a star of the future. Whilst he was still a junior Verdens Gang newspaper reported in November 2005 that "the ski manufacturers are fighting to get Northug".^[1] Fischer won his signature, and his contract included a base salary (the first time ever for a junior), which would be multiplied by five if he made the Norwegian elite team for 2006/07, which he did. The contract also offered bonuses if he won medals in the junior World Championships.

Northug has six gold medals from junior World Championships. His first two gold medals came in 2004/05 in the pursuit and the 10 km freestyle in Rovaniemi, then in 2005/06 in Kranj he won gold in the 10 km classic, the pursuit, the sprint, and the relay. He also has two silver medals (one in the sprint, and one in the relay, both in 2004/05). His victories made him the first athlete ever to win five individual gold medals at the FIS Junior Nordic World Ski Championships. During 2005/06 he also took part in the Norwegian National Championships, and won the double pursuit race, beating Frode Estil by 1.9 seconds, and became the first junior to ever win a Norwegian National Championship.

Before he joined the World Cup he competed in a few Continental Cup meetings, but mostly in the Scandinavian Cup. During his Scandinavian Cup career (2004/05 & 2005/06) he had seven podium finishes, he came second once in 2004/05, and in 2005/06 he scored four victories, and two second places.

Athletic career[link]

The 2005/06 season was Northug's first in the World Cup, although he competed in one race the season before, a sprint in Drammen, he came 35th. During the 2005/06 season he shared his time equally between the World Cup and the Scandinavian Cup, although in early May 2006 it was announced that Northug would be in the senior national team for the 2006/07 season.^[2] Northug also claimed his first World Cup victory in the 2005/06 season, in a pursuit race in Falun, beating 2005/06 World Cup winner Tobias Angerer, who came second, and 2004/05 overall champion Axel Teichmann was third.^[3] Then in the last race of the year, a pursuit in Sapporo he claimed another podium place, coming second.^[4] He lost to Mathias Fredriksson by 3.8 seconds. He also came seventh, tenth, and twelfth in sprint races, and fifteenth in the 50 km freestyle in Holmenkollen. Northug finished the 2005/06 World Cup season in 14th place overall. He also finished 14th in the distance standings, and 24th in the sprint.^[5]

After Norway's disappointing display at the 2006 Winter Olympics, the Norwegian press questioned why Northug was not taken to the games. Northug himself admitted he was disappointed after not getting selected, especially as he had won the double pursuit in the National Championships earlier in the year.^[6]

Northug won his first gold medal at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Sapporo as a member of the 4 x 10 km relay in 2007. He added three more golds at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2009 in Liberec, earning them in the 15 km + 15 km double pursuit, 4 x 10 km relay and 50 km freestyle mass start.

Northug was the runner up to the overall World Cup in the 2008/2009 season, losing to the Swiss Dario Cologna after leading before the final races.

Northug finished in an extremely disappointing 41st place in the first Cross Country event during the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada. A day later, Northug responded with a bronze medal in the Sprint Event. This success was short lived however, as he broke his pole in the end of the 30 km pursuit. He then won his first Olympic gold, in the Team Sprint, alongside Øystein Pettersen.

Days later he was skiing the anchor leg in the 4 x 10 km relay. When he took over from Lars Berger who was skiing the 3rd leg, he was 37.5 seconds behind the lead group. Despite this he managed to perform his incredibly fast finish to catch and overtake France and the Czech Republic to win Norway a silver medal.

Northug won the Men's 50 kilometre classic at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Less than two weeks later, he won the 50 kilometre freestyle event at the Holmenkollen, becoming the first skier to win the 50 km at the Winter Olympics, World Championships, and Holmenkollen since Sweden's Gunde Svan reached that triple crown in 1988.

In September 2010 details of Northug's sponsorship contract with soft drink manufacturer Red Bull were publicized by Norwegian broadcaster TV 2, which did not divulge its sources, revealing the most profitable sponsorship agreement with an individual athlete in Norwegian history. For four years, until after the 2014 Winter Olympics, Northug will be receiving a minimum of NOK 1 million annually with a prospect of getting twice the amount if his performances equal those in his most recent seasons.^[7] During the 2011 World Championship, he gained widespread international attention when he controversially crossed the finish-line sideways after convincingly beating his opponents. The gesture was regarded (by media, not said by Hellner) as utterly disrespectful, most notably towards his most fierce rival, Marcus Hellner.

Northug did not start the 2010-2011 season well, missing the first three weeks of the world cup due illness. His Tour de Ski campaign was also marred by poor results (to his standard) in the opening stages. He however climbed the rankings and finished 2nd after winning the prestigious penultimate stage (20 km classical mass start) in Val di Fiemme (taking all intermediate bonus sprints as well which has never been done by the winner of the race). In the Holmenkollen World Ski Championship Northug raced in five disciplines, taking 3 gold and 2 silver medals. At the end of the season Northug also won the Season Finale in Sweden, beating his compatriot Finn Haagen Krogh.

As of 2012, Northug is far and wide unmatched as to number of medals among the active cross country skiers. His tally of 13 Olympic and World Championship medals (9 gold, 3 silver, 1 bronze) stands tall above his peers: Tobias Angerer 11 (0-6-5), Axel Teichmann 10 (2-7-1), Jens Filbrich 9 (0-4-5), Giorgio di Centa 7 (2-2-3), Pietro Piller Cottrer 7 (2-2-3), Anders Soedergren 7 (1-3-3), Marcus Hellner 5 (3-1-1), Eldar Roenning 5 (3-1-1), Johann Olson 5 (1-1-3), Lars Berger 4 (3-1-0), Lukas Bauer 4 (0-2-2), Ola Vigen Hattestad 3 (2-1-0), Martin Johnsrud Sundby 3 (1-1-1), Daniel Rickardsson 2 (1-1-0), Tord Asle Gjerdalen 2 (1-0-1), Matti Heikinen 2 (1-0-1), Dario Cologna 1 (1-0-0). He has also already surpassed recently retired champions Frode Estil 13 (6-4-3) and Odd-Bjoern Hjelmeset 10 (5-1-4). Northug is however still to match his legendary predecessor Bjoern Daehlie with his 29 (17-9-3) Olympic and World Championship medals.

Personal life[link]

He has two brothers, Even and Tomas.^[8] Northug finished school in 2006, but during the summer of 2005 he changed schools from Steinkjer to Meråker and moved into a cabin next to the ski trails to optimize his training conditions.^[9]

Petter Northug participated and cashed (on 653rd place) in the 2010 World Series of Poker main event which he played with close friend and rival Marcus Hellner.^[10]

Career highlights[link]