In addition to being a national cross-country skiing champion Lorns Skjemstad coached the Norwegian women’s team and wrote several books on the sport. At the 1965 Norwegian championships Skjemstad won gold in the 30 kilometres and silver in the 50 kilometres. In 1966 he finished second in the 15 kilometres and third in the 30 kilometres at the Lahti Ski Games, followed by an eighth-place finish at the in the 30 kilometres at the Nordic Ski World Championships. Skjemstad just missed out on a top-ten finish at the 1968 Grenoble Olympics when he came 11th in the 30 kilometres, only one second behind Anatoly Akentyev. After studying at the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences he then moved into coaching working with the Norwegian women’s cross-country ski team from 1970 to 1972. Skjemstad helped the team to win bronze in the 3 × 5 kilometre relay at the 1972 Sapporo Olympics.
Norway