Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a means of transportation. Variants of cross-country skiing are adapted to a range of terrain which spans unimproved, sometimes mountainous terrain to groomed courses that are specifically designed for the sport.
Skiing is a means of transport using skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International Ski Federation (FIS).
A ski is a narrow strip of semi-rigid material worn underfoot to glide over snow. Substantially longer than wide and characteristically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partially secured heel. For climbing slopes, ski skins can be attached at the base of the ski.
Lillehammer is a town and municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. As of 2018, the population of the town of Lillehammer was 28,034. The city centre is a late nineteenth-century concentration of wooden houses, which enjoys a picturesque location overlooking the northern part of lake Mjøsa and the river Lågen, surrounded by mountains. Lillehammer hosted the 1994 Winter Olympics and 2016 Winter Youth Olympics. Before Oslo's withdrawal from consideration, it was included as part of a bid to host events in the 2022 Winter Olympics if Oslo were to win the rights to hold the Games.
Skiing, or traveling over snow on skis, has a history of at least eight millennia. The earliest archaeological examples of skis were found in Russia and date to 6000 BCE. Although modern skiing has evolved from beginnings in Scandinavia, 5000-year-old wall paintings suggest use of skis in the Xinjiang region of what is now China; however, this continues to be debated. Originally purely utilitarian, starting in the mid-1800s skiing became a popular recreational activity and sport, becoming practiced in snow-covered regions worldwide, and providing a market for the development of ski resorts and their related communities.
Ski wax is a material applied to the bottom of snow runners, including skis, snowboards, and toboggans, to improve their coefficient of friction performance under varying snow conditions. The two main types of wax used on skis are glide waxes and grip waxes. They address kinetic friction—to be minimized with a glide wax—and static friction—to be achieved with a grip wax. Both types of wax are designed to be matched with the varying properties of snow, including crystal type and size, and moisture content of the snow surface, which vary with temperature and the temperature history of the snow. Glide wax is selected to minimize sliding friction for both alpine and cross-country skiing. Grip wax provides on-snow traction for cross-country skiers, as they stride forward using classic technique.
Helly Hansen is a Norwegian producer of textiles and gear for sports and work on the ocean and in the mountains, headquartered in Oslo, Norway. From its founding in 1877 until October 2009, the company was headquartered in Moss, Norway.
Elan is a Slovenian company, located in Begunje na Gorenjskem, specializing in the production of sporting goods. It is best known for its skis and snowboards. Other products include sailboats from 30 to 50 ft length, motor yachts, apparel, and equipment for sports facilities. The brand became better known in the late 1970s, when Swedish alpine skiing ace Ingemar Stenmark won three consecutive World Cup overall titles on Elan skis. The company also manufactured license-built DG gliders from 1978.
C More Entertainment AB is a pay television company that previously operated as Canal+. It targets Nordic countries and has a separate channel in Sweden.
Martin Matsbo was a Swedish cross-country skier who won a bronze medal in the 4 × 10 km relay at the 1936 Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. He finished fourth in the 18 km event at those Games.
Spyder is an American Colorado-based manufacturer of high-end skiing apparel. According to the company's website, it is the world's largest ski specialty brand.
Nobina Norge AS is a Norwegian bus company, owned by Nobina, that operates in the counties of Vestland, Viken and the cities of Oslo and Tromsø.
Madshus is a Norwegian ski and ski-equipment manufacturer, located at Biri in Gjøvik. The company produces cross-country skis, ski boots and poles.
Ferd is a Norwegian holding company which holds partial ownership in companies within industry and finance as well as a real estate portfolio. The company has 75 employees and is owned by Johan H. Andresen and his two daughters Katharina and Alexandra; it was established in 2001. The group also has a number of venture and private equity holdings.
Skigo AB is a Swedish manufacturing company of winter sports products, with its head office and production located in the city of Kiruna. Current range of products by Skigo includes ski waxes, poles and gloves. The company was founded by former cross-country skier Christer Majbäck and its products are distributed worldwide.
Karhu is a Finnish sports brand. Karhu, meaning bear in Finnish, was first used as a sporting goods brand in 1916 by the Finnish company Ab Sport Artiklar. The brand is currently owned by Karhu Holding B.V., which purchased it in 2008, and is used to market running shoes, sportswear, and skiing and other sports equipment in Finland and abroad.
Johan Henrik Andresen is a Norwegian industrialist and investor. Since 1998, Andresen has been the owner of Ferd, one of the largest privately held companies in Norway. He served in the position of CEO from 1998 to 2012, and has been the chairman of the board since 2012. In the magazine Kapital’s list of the 400 richest Norwegians, Andresen is ranked as number five, with a net worth equaling more than USD 3.27 billion. While his father Johan H. Andresen Sr. lived, Andresen added 'Jr.' to his name, but ended this practice when his father died in 2011.
Ellesse is a British sports apparel company originally founded in Umbria, Italy in 19 June 1959. It has been owned by British Pentland Group since 1987.
Otto Victor Tschudi Jr. is a Norwegian alpine skier best known for success in the American NCAA_Skiing_Championships and World Pro Skiing ski racing circuits. He participated at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble and at the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo, and achieved four top-ten results in World Cup slalom races. Between 1970 and 1972 he won five individual NCAA championships for the University of Denver_Pioneers_ski_team while the team won two team championships. After the Sapporo Olympics Tschudi competed for eight seasons on the World Pro Skiing Tour, leading the Rossignol international team. He served as president of the Professional Ski Racers Association and as director of skiing at Winter Park Resort in Colorado. Tschudi later joined the financial-service firm Montgomery Securities in San Francisco, and rose to become a partner and managing director of international sales at Thomas Weisel Partners.
