Vibeke Skofterud

Vibeke Westbye Skofterud (20 April 1980 – 29 July 2018) was a Norwegian cross country skier. She won gold in the 4 x 5 km relay at Vancouver in 2010. Her best individual finish at the Winter Olympics was 8th in the 30 km event at Salt Lake City in 2002.

Skofterud won a complete set of 4 x 5 km medals at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships (gold: 2005,gold: 2011, silver: 2003, bronze: 2007) and earned her best individual finish of 13th in the 5 km + 5 km double pursuit in 2003.

Her first individual victory came in a pursuit race in Norway in 2006.

In 2012, Skofterud became the first Norwegian to win the Vasaloppet official ladies class. She set a new record time, 4.08,24, more than 8 minutes faster than the previous record from 1998. This was the first time ever she competed in a race as long as 90 km.

The 2012/2013 World Cup season proved to be difficult for Skofterud, due to illness and injuries, and she was forced to quit the season halfway through. She made a comeback on the national team the following winter, but her results were less than satisfactory. After failing to qualify for the 2014 Winter Olympics, Skofterud announced her retirement from the national team, in favour of a career in ski marathon.

On 18 August 2015, Skofterud announced her retirement from top level cross country skiing.

World Cup results

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

Personal life

In 2005, Skofterud turned down an offer to appear in the Norwegian edition of the men's magazine FHM. The rejection came after pressure from the Norwegian skiing federation. Skofterud's laptop with several private photos was stolen in 2004, and some of these images appeared on internet discussion groups in November 2006.

Skofterud suffered from eating disorders, which she claimed as a reason for canceling many competitions in the previous seasons.

Skofterud confirmed in June 2008 that she was in a committed relationship with a woman. She had previously been in relationships with men.

Skofterud died on July 29, 2018 in a jetski accident near Arendal. She was 38 years old.