Claudia Nystad

Cross country skiing is one of the most physically demanding winter sports. It requires great strength and endurance, not to mention incredible balance. Training for an event such as this one is similar to having a full-time job; competitors strap on pairs of skis and propel themselves across snow-covered terrain with poles. Only a select few can excel at this activity, and Claudia Nystad is one of those people. She’s a decorated athlete who gained recognition for her skills as a cross-country skier. She was born as Claudia Kinzel in February, 1978 in the town of Zschopau, Germany. She is currently involved with the sports club WSC Erzgebirge Oberwiesenthal, and she is also a member of the German Federal Armed Forces as a sports soldier.

Claudia Nystad- Career Highlights

The first of Nystad’s athletic accomplishments began at the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, when she won the gold medal in the 4x5 kilometre cross-country relay event. In 2003 at the Nordic World Ski Championships, she helped her teammates win the gold again in the same event, and she also won a silver medal competing in the individual sprint. At the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin, she won two silver medals in the relay and the sprint. In the 2007 world Championship in Sapporo, Nystad teamed up with Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle to win silver medals in both the individual sprint and the 4x5 relay. In 2009, she stayed at the top of the competition by winning silver in the 4x5 relay at the World Championships in Liberec. During the 2010 Winter Olypics in Vancouver, Claudia shared a gold medal with her teammates by winning the team relay, and silver in the team sprint. Back in the summer of 2007 she donated her 2002 Olympic gold medal to the Hansel and Gretel Foundation, an organisation dedicated to helping abused children. Following her victories in Vancouver, Claudia retired from the sport.