Bjarne Iversen was only 21 when he had arrived at the top national cross-country skiing level in Norway. In 1934 he came second in the Holmenkollen 17 km, and in 1935 was national champion at 17 km. Later in the season he placed sixth in the 18 km race at the World Championships in Vysoke Tatry, and earned a silver medal as a member of Norway’s 4×10 km relay team. In the 1936 Winter Olympic cross-country relay, Iversen skied the anchor leg for Norway, and had a lead of 1:22 at the last exchange over Finland’s last skier Kalle Jalkanen. Iversen was a good technician on the easier part of the course, but his weak point was obviously uphill. The first half of the course was mostly uphill, and Jalkanen decided to give all he had from the start. His tactics succeeded, catching the nervous Iversen halfway. They stayed together for another 2-3 km, and then Jalkanen made his final move and was able to leave Iversen 30 m behind. The winning margin for Finland was six seconds.
Iversen continued his skiing career until the outbreak of World War II, his best placing after 1936 was fifth at 17 km in the Norwegian Championships 1939. He was the only member of the 1936 Norwegian cross-country team who came from the Oslo area.
Norway