Erik Larsson (skier)

Erik Larsson
	Erik Larsson at the 1936 Olympics
Personal information
Born	12 April 1912; Kurravaara, Sweden
Died	10 March 1982 (aged 69); Kiruna, Sweden
Height	163 cm (5 ft 4 in)
Weight	59 kg (130 lb)
Sport
Sport	Cross-country skiing
Club	IFK Kiruna
Medal record
Men's cross-country skiing
Representing Sweden
Olympic Games
World Championships

Erik August Larsson (12 April 1912 – 10 March 1982) was a Swedish cross-country skier who competed in the 1930s. He won two medals at the 1936 Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen with a gold in the 18 km and a bronze in the 4 × 10 km relay. The same year he was awarded the Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal. Larsson also won a bronze in the 4 × 10 km relay at the 1935 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships.^[1]^[2]

Larsson was born as the second youngest of six siblings in a religious Finnish-speaking family. In 1935, he started working as a cleaner at the Kiruna iron ore mine in the summer and as a lumberjack in the winter. In 1939, after attending a prayer meeting in Kurravaara he gave up his sport career and became a Laestadian Christian. He was later a preacher in the Firstborn Laestadian congregation in Kiruna. His son Lars became a preacher in Luleå, while his granddaughter Åsa Larsson was a tax lawyer and a writer of crime novels.^[1]

Cross-country skiing results

All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation (FIS).^[3]

Olympic Games

2 medals – (1 gold, 1 bronze)

Year	Age	18 km	50 km	4 × 10 km relay
1936	23	Gold	—	Bronze

World Championships

1 medal – (1 bronze)

Year	Age	18 km	50 km	4 × 10 km relay
1935	22	—	—	Bronze
1938	25	12	—	—

References

^ ^a ^b Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Erik Larsson". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020.
^ Erik Larsson. Swedish Olympic Committee
^ "LARSSON Erik-August". FIS-Ski. International Ski Federation. Retrieved 13 January 2020.