After his home village, Bjarne Andersson was called the “perpetual motion from Ödeshög” competing internationally from 1964 to 1973. As a young man, he had moved from his parents’ farm to Umeå, where he did his military service in the cavalry and met three-time Olympian Assar Rönnlund. In cross-country skiing, Andersson had his breakthrough in 1962, when he defeated Sixten Jernberg. He placed second in the Vasa ski-marathon in 1965 and 1971 and fourth in 1964 and 1968 and was the winner of the Skinnar race in Malung in 1971. Between 1966 and 1973 he was also Swedish cross-country skiing champion over 15 km in 1968 and six times in the relay with his club IFK Mora. Internationally, a fourth place at the World Championships in Oslo in 1966 (15 km) was his best individual result. At the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, Andersson won a relay silver and also finished sixth in the 15 km event. In track and field he competed in cross-country running with considerable success, winning three individual Swedish Championships and one with the team between 1968 and 1973. He also competed in the traditional Finland-Sweden athletics meet in 1970.
During his active career Andersson made his living by forest clearing and duty at a gas station in downtown Mora. Later he worked with a shoe factory, developing a ski boot model that bore his name. Towards the end of his skiing career, he started a sports shop specializing in equipment for running and cross-country. From 1976-80 he was coach of the Swedish national ski team. Then he switched to the more commercial side of the sports industry as a salesman, at times responsible for elite service to contracted skiers. From 1983-87 he was an expert commentator on television. Andersson still competed thru 1997, winning triple gold in the veteran World Cup on skis.
Sweden