Samppa Lajunen

Samppa Kalevi Lajunen
Country	Finland
Born	(1979-04-23) 23 April 1979 Turku, Finland
Height	1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Ski club	Jyväskylän Hiihtoseura
World Cup career
Seasons	1995–2004
Starts	113
Podiums	55
Wins	20
Overall titles	2 (1997, 2000)
Medal record Men's Nordic combined Representing Finland Olympic Games 2002 Salt Lake City 15 km individual 2002 Salt Lake City 7.5 km sprint 2002 Salt Lake City 4 × 5 km team 1998 Nagano 15 km individual 1998 Nagano 4 × 5 km team World Championships 1999 Ramsau 4 × 5 km team 1997 Trondheim 4 × 5 km team 1999 Ramsau 15 km individual 2001 Lahti 15 km individual 2001 Lahti 7.5 km sprint 2001 Lahti 4 × 5 km team 2003 Val di Fiemme 15 km individual 2003 Val di Fiemme 4 × 5 km team

Samppa Lajunen (born 23 April 1979 in Turku) is a retired Finnish Nordic combined athlete who competed during the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Athletic career

A winner of five Winter Olympic Games medals, his career highlight came at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City when Lajunen won all three gold medals in the Nordic combined events. He also won silver medals at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano in both the 15 km individual and 4 × 5 km team events.

Lajunen also found success at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, winning eight medals. This included one gold (4 × 5 km team: 1999), four silvers (15 km individual: 1999, 2001; 4 × 5 km team: 1997, 7.5 km sprint: 2001); and three bronzes (15 km individual: 2003, 4 × 5 km team: 2001, 2003)

Lajunen ended his career after the season 2003/2004 at a quite early age, 24 years old, and concentrated on his studies at the University of Jyväskylä. In the spring of 2007 he graduated with a Master's degree in Economics and Business Administration.

References

• Samppa Lajunen at the International Ski and Snowboard Federation