Team Norway to the podium at the Summer Olympics

Medal bonanza on penultimate day brings total to eight

Michael Kleiner
Business & Sports Editor
The Norwegian American

It took 11 days for Norway to receive its first medal at the Paris Summer Olympics, July 24-Aug. 11. The gold in the decathlon even shocked the winner, 22-year-old Markus Rooth.

“I’m so young, in my head this shouldn’t happen yet,” he told Norwegian media. “I hoped to be close to taking a medal in 2028, and then I win in 2024. I thought it was a good decathlon, but I didn’t think I had won Olympic gold.”

Rooth recorded a Norwegian record 8,796 points and is the first Norwegian to win the decathlon since Helge Løvland in 1920. Leo Neugebauer (Germany) followed Rooth (8,748 pts), and Lindon Victor (Granada) secured the bronze (8,711).

Rooth’s scores were 10.71 in the 100m (14th), 7.80m in the long jump (3rd);, 15.25m in the shot put (6th); 1.99m in the high jump (10th); 47.69 in the 400 meters (8th); 14.25 in the 110m hurdles (9th); 49.80m in the discus (5th); 5.30m in pole vault (2nd);  66.87m in javelin (6th, PB) and season-best 4.39.56 in 1500 meters (11th).

Teammate Sander Skotheim, 22, led the competition before the pole vault but missed three times at the initial height of 4.50m. Rooth vaulted 5.30m. Neugebauer led before the javelin competition, but his best throw was 56.64m, while Rooth hit a career high 66.87m, giving him a 16-point lead entering the 1,500m finale.  Skotheim provided cover for him in the race. Victor was 15th, Neugebauer 16th in the 1,500m.

Rooth literally received the royal treatment receiving messages from King Harald and Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre; the water salute at Gardemoen Airport, the plane taxiing under an arc of water sprayed by fire hoses and feted in his Oslo neighborhood.

With a bonanza of three golds and two bronzes on the next-to-last day, Norway equaled its medal total from 2021 with 8 (4-1-3).

Women’s handball

Norway and Sweden were knotted 27-27 with 5:06 remaining in the opening group game. The Swedes scored five of the last six goals for a 32-28 victory, However, Norway rattled off seven straight wins culminating in a 29-21 victory over host France in the gold medal game before 28,000 spectators. Denmark beat Sweden for the bronze medal.

Norway rallied from a 3-0 deficit and held a 15-13 halftime lead. Helped by three goals in 1:27, Norway built a 21-15 advantage with 18:11 left. France cut the deficit to 24-20, but Stine Bredal Oftedal, 32, (5G-0A), Kari Brattset Dale, 33, (6G), Henny Ella Reistad, 25, (8G) and Dale scored for a 28-20 lead. Norway played aggressive defense, forcing turnovers, 44-year-old goalie Katrina Lunde made 12 saves, and the offense converted 69% of its shots.

It was the fifth straight Olympics Norway medaled. Five-time Olympian Lunde is the first woman’s handball player and first Norwegian woman to win three gold medals at the Summer Olympics: the first Norwegian athlete to medal in five different Olympic games, and first with three gold medals since shooter Einar Liberg in 1908, 1920, 1924. She was part of the 2008 and 2012 Olympic champions and 2016 and 2020 bronze medalists. The final was her Norwegian record 363rd for the national team.

Camilla Herrem, 37, was part of the 2012, 2016 and 2020 teams. Oftedal, 32, who plans to retire from at least the national team and  Olympic scoring leader Nora Mørk, 33, have played for Norway since 2010. Eleven players on the Olympic team have also won World Cup and European championships.

Multiple players can score double-digit goals, but they didn’t need to because of great balance. In six games, the leading scorer(s) had six or fewer goals. Everybody played. Teams would stay close, but Norway always had a run or more in them. They beat Denmark 27-18, Korea 26-20, Slovenia 29-22 (scoring on 12 of their first 16 shots), Germany 30-18; Brazil 32-15 in the quarterfinals, and Denmark 25-21 in the semifinal.

Gold: Men’s 5,000m

Jakob Ingebrigtsen, 23, redeemed himself for a shocking loss in the 1,500m with a gold medal performance in the 5,000m (season-best 13:13.66), ahead of Ronald Kwemoi (Kenya) by 1.38 and Grant Fisher (United States) by 1.47. Unlike in the 1,500m, Ingebrigtsen did not take an early lead. He was ninth at the 1,000-meter point;14th at 2,000m; sixth at 3,000m behind Biniam Mehary (Ethiopia), Addisu Yihune (Ethiopia), John Heymans (Belgium), Thierry Ndikumwenayo (Spain), with 0.98 separating leader Mehary and Ingebrigtsen. At 4,000m, Ingebrigtsen had moved to fifth, then passed the field in the last 1,000m.

The 1,500m waas hyped as a showdown between Ingebrigtsen and Great Britain’s Josh Kerr, not that the two runners were discouraging it. Ingebrigtsen took a lead immediately, though it was still crowded. American Cole Hocker started making a move in the next-to-last turn before the homestretch. As they made the final turn, Hocker was crowded on the left side of the track, just to the left of Ingebrigtsen. When Ingebrigtsen moved slightly to the right, Hocker saw his opening and powered on. Kerr passed Ingebrigtsen. Suddenly, to Ingebrigtsen’s right Yared Nuguse (United States) was getting an extra burst and passed Ingebrigtsen. Hocker crossed the finish line in an Olympic record 3:27.65, Kerr 0.04 behind Hocker and a fraction ahead of Nuguse. Ingebrigtsen (3:28.24) had been sashayed away from the podium position as the United States earned two podiums in the Olympic 1,500m for the first time.

Gold: Women’s weightlifting: 81kg

Norway’s third gold came from an unexpected place—women’s weightlifting. Solfrid Eila Amena Koanda, 25, took gold in 81kg, but set an Olympic record with combined 275kg, and a clean-and-jerk of 154kg. She lifted 148kg on her first try and was unsuccessful at 162kg on her third attempt. In the snatch, her best lift was 121kg, after 117kg and before an unsuccessful 124kg.

Silver: Men’s 400m hurdles

It came down to the top #3: Rai Benjamin (United States), Karsten Warholm, 28, (Norway) and Alison dos Santos (Brazil). Benjamin had the outside lane, Warholm inside. Benjamin started in front of Warholm. As Warholm drew closer to Benjamin, before the turn into the homestretch, Benjamin accelerated. Dos Santos was also there as the top three separated themselves from the others. Warholm seemed to slow down and grazed one of the last hurdles. Warholm (47.06, +0.60) held off dos Santos (47.26, +0.80) by 0.20 for the silver. Benjamin (46.46 SB) made up for his loss to Warholm in Tokyo.

Bronze: Sailing: one-person dinghy

It was bright and sunny in Marseille, but the lack of wind pushed the one-person dinghy medal races to the following day. Line Flem Høst, 28, entered the 10th and final race third, while Marit Bouwmeester (Netherlands) and Anne-Marie Rindom (Denmark) had already secured gold and silver, respectively, leaving only bronze available. Høst had plenty of rivals but maintained a safe distance and finished second (14:25) after Chiara Benini Floriani (Italy) to take the bronze with 75 points. Discovery’s commentators Bjørnar Erikstad and Tiril Hartvedt Bue extolled, “She sails like a goddess.”

Hermann Tomasgaard, 30, finished 4th in the men’s one-person dinghy medal race in 20:28, +0.23 back of Matt Wearn (Australia), +0.18 behind Pavlos Kontides (Cyprus), +0.13 shy of Jonatan Vadnai (Hungary) and fourth overall with 85 points, one short of bronze medalist Vadnai.

Bronze: Men’s beach volleyball

Anders Mol 27, and Christian Sørum, 28, seemed headed toward another gold medal. They didn’t lose a set in the first five matches, completing the matches in 37-39 minutes.

Nils Ehlers/Clemens Wickler (Germany) awaited them in the semifinals. The Germans were 0-6 against the Norwegians. Mol/Sørum lost their first set of the tournament 21-13, then jumped to a 3-0 lead in the second set en route to a 14-6 lead. Particularly interesting was the battle at the net between 6’7” Mol and 6’11” Ehlers, who was getting the blocks or the placement of the ball into Norway’s end. The Germans were hustling as much as Norway, going after every ball, be it low or on the end lines. Balls that might have fallen in against previous Norway opponents, Wickler was digging for, keeping the volleys going. Ehlers/Wickler drew within 17-15, but Mol/Sørum prevailed 21-17.

The deciding third set goes to 15 points and the four put on a show. The Germans had match point at 14-12, but Norway got the point, and it was 14-13. Norway was awarded the next point, but Ehlers/Wickler won a challenge, flipping the set score from 14-14 to 15-13 Germany and they were headed to the title game…Bronze Medal Match: Norway defeated Cherif Younousse/Ahmed Tijan (Qatar) 21-13, 21-17.

Bronze: Women’s wrestling freestyle 62kg

Grace Jacob Bullen, 27, had a powerful performance, defeating Siwar Bousetta (Tunisia) 12-2 on technical superiority at 3:53 of the second period, followed by a win over Luisa Helga Gerda Niemesch (Germany) 10-0 on technical superiority at 1:15 of the second period. Eventual gold medalist Sakura Motoki (Japan) defeated Bullen by fall at 4:26 of overtime after the pair tied 7-7. Bullen defeated Ana Paula Godinez Gonzalez (Canada) 11-0 on technical superiority at 0:57 of the second period for the bronze.

Almost: Men’s handball

After its first three games, Norway’s men’s handball team seemed headed for its first Olympic medal. First, Norway beat Argentina 36-31 (Tobias Schjølberg Grøndahl 8G-4A; Kristian Bjørnsen 6G). Next was host France 27-22 (Alexander Christoffersen Blonz 7-0; Harald Reinkind 3-7). Blonz capped a 9-goal game with a tally with two seconds left for a 26-25 victory over Hungary. Lyse added 6 goals and GK Torbjørn Sittrup Bergerud had 14 saves, including a point-blank shot with 5 seconds left that keyed the winning fast break. Egypt edged Norway 26-25; Denmark outplayed Norway (Blonz 7-0, Reinkind 6-2) in the group finale, 32-25, aided by 15 saves by GK Emil Nielsen. Slovenia ended Norway’s (Blonz 7-1; Grøndahl 4-7) medal hopes in the quarterfinals 33-25.

Norway sent a record 108 men and women athletes to the Summer Olympics to participate in 21 sports and 33 disciplines. Not everyone could win a medal. Here are the results of some of the non-medalists. Results from olympics.com. 

Tennis

Men: Casper Ruud, 25, defeated Taro Daniel (Japan) 7-5, 6-1; Andrea Vavassorri (Italy) 4-6, 6-4, 6-3; Francisco Cerundolo (Argentina) 6-3, 6-4 before Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada) defeated Ruud 6-4, 6-7 (8), 6-3 in the quarterfinals.

Track and field

Men’s hammer throw: Eivind Henriksen, 33, finished fourth with a season-best toss of 79.18m, 0.21m behind the bronze spot; 400m: Håvard Bentdal Ingvaldsen, 21, was seventh (44.94) in his semifinal after finishing third in his qualification heat; Women’s 400m hurdles semifinal 1: Amalie Iuel, 30, placed fifth (54.88) after running a season best in finishing third in her qualification heat (54.82); Women’s 400m: Though Henriette Jæger, 21, placed eighth (49,96), it was the  second straight race she ran under 50.0; Women’s 5,000m: Karoline Bjerkeli Grøvdal, 34, clocked 14:43.21, good for seventh in the final, but 17.93 faster than her qualification heat time; Women’s 4×400 relay: Norway’s (3:28.61 ) quartet of Josefine Eriksen (52.30 (Rank Leg-4th-Race Rank: 4th), 23; Astri Ertzgaard (52.14 (1:44.44) (7-5), 22; Elisabeth Slettum (52.59 (2:37.03) (7-7), 37; and Iuel 51.58 (3:28.61) (6-6), 30, placed sixth in the qualification heat, Men’s pole vault: Sondre Guttormsen (5.80m), 25, was eighth, while; Mondo DuPlantis (Sweden) set the world record of 6.25m; Men’s marathon: Sondre Nordstad Moen, 33, placed 32nd with a season-best 2:11.39 and Zerei Kbrom Mezngi, 38, finished 52nd with season-best 2:14.14.

Sailing

Women’s skiff: With Helene Næss, 33, at the helm, and Marie Rønningen, 30, the crew, the duo finished fourth overall with 92 net points; Women’s windsurfing: In 14 races, Mina Mobekk, 20, finished 11th overall, 159 points, net 120.

Rowing
Women’s kayak double 500m heat 1 (top 2 advance to final, others quarterfinal): Norway (Maria Virik, 24,  Anna Margrete Sletsjøe, 26) clocked 1:47.17, for fifth place, then was sixth in the quarterfinal 1 (1:43.28); Women’s kayak four 500m (top 3 in heats advance to final, others semifinal): In heat 1, Norway’ quartet of Kristine Strand Amundsen, 26, Hedda Øritsland, 25, Sletsjøe, and Virik placed fourth (1:34.28), then were second in semifinal 1 (1:34.77) and finished seventh in the final 1 (1:35.02); Women’s double skulls: Thea Helseth (bow), 28, and Inger Seim Kavlie (stroke), 30, clocked 7:00.78, for fourth in heat 3 but advanced to repechage, where they were second (7:10.39, top 3 advance to semifinals), then third in a semifinal (6:52.47), +0.22 ahead of Australia (top 3 advance to final A), and closed out their rowing with a sixth-place finish in final A (6:58.41); Men’s double skulls: Norway Martin Helseth, (bow), 30, Kjetil Borch, (stroke)), 36, was second in heat 2 (6:22.36), sixth in semifinal (6:20.7) and fourth in final B (6:17.51); Men’s lightweight double skulls: Norway (Lars Martin Benske (bow), 24,and Ask Jarl Tjøm (stroke), 28, finished second (6:41.77) in heat 3; third in semifinal (6:26.62), fifth in final A (6:20.92), which was good for seventh of all 16 boats in the two finals; Men’s quadruple skulls: Norway Kristoffer Brun (bow), 26; Jan Oscar Stabe Helvig (seat 2), 28; Jonas Slettemark Juel (seat 4), 24; Erik Andre Solbakken (stroke), 30) was fourth in heat 1 (5:50.48); third in repechage (5:53.13), and second in final B (5:51.88), which was the sixth best time among final A and B rowers.

Taekwondo

Richard Ordemann, 30, won his men’s round of 16 +80kg bout against Slovenian Patrik Divkovic, 2-1, then lost two of three rounds to Croatian Ivan Sapina in the quarterfinal. Though Ordemann and Divkovic tied 2-2 in each of the first two rounds, Divkovic was awarded the first round on superiority, Ordemann the second on superiority. Ordemann then took the third, 12-9, won the first round from Sapina 5-3, then lost 7-13, 3-5.

Shooting

10m air rifle mixed team qualification: Norway 1 (Jeanette Hegg Duestad, 25, and Jon-Hermann Hegg, 25,) were fifth, just missing the fourth spot, which would have qualified them for the bronze medal round; Women’s 10m air rifle qualification (top 8 advance): Duestad was second in qualification and eighth in the final (633.2 pts); Men’s 10m air rifle qualification (top 8 advance): Hegg was ninth (629.6), 0.2 from eighth; Men’s 50m rifle 3 positions: Hegg was second in qualification and fifth in finals (430.2 pts); Women’s 50m rifle 3 positions: Duestad was fifth in qualification and fourth in the final (442.5 pts).

Equestrian

Women’s dressage individual grand prix freestyle: Isabel Freese, 45,   aboard Total Hope Old, was fourth in qualifying group D (76.397 pts), but then was 10th in the final (83.050); Women’s jumping individual: Victoria Gullikson, 32, on Mistral Van de Vogelszang, was 14th in qualifying round (76.240, 24th in the final (84.83).

Golf

Men: Viktor Hovland, 26, tied for 30th with a -4 under par 280 after being +3 after the first two rounds. He shot a 67 and 68 in the last two rounds, compared with 145 on the first two; Kristoffer Ventura, 29, tied for 43rd with 71-68-76-69-284 scorecard; Women: Celine Borge, 26, finished tied for 29th with overall -1 under par. She was consistent with 71-73–75-71 scores for a total of 290.

Triathlon

Men: Kristian Blummenfelt, 30, was 12th, Vetle Bergsvik Thorn, 25, was 17th.

Boxing

Men’s 92+kg: Bakhodir Jalolov (Uzbekistan) defeated Omar Shiha, 25, (Norway) 5-0 on points; Women’s 75kg: Lovlina Borgohain (India) defeated Sunniva Hofstad, 20, (Norway) 5-0 on points.

Cycling

Women’s omnium: Anita Stenberg, 31, finished 8th with 102 points, earned through 8th place and 26 pts in the scratch race, all biker’s time 9:06, and average speed 49.451km/hr; 12th place/18 pts in tempo race; 5th and 32 pts in the elimination race; time 14:27 avg speed 48.789/km hr; 6th and 26 pts in points race.

Swimming

Men’s 800m freestyle: Jon Joentvedt, 21,  (7:59.16) was fifth and Henrik Christiansen, 27, was 6th (8:00.55) in heat 2; Men’s 50m freestyle: Nicholas Lia, 23, finished 7th in his heat (22.91); Men’s 1,500m freestyle: Christiansen was fourth in his heat (15:14.11); Men’s 10km: Christiansen was 25th (2:03:38.2).

This article originally appeared in the September 2024 issue of  The Norwegian American.