Norway Mourns Tufte, Two-Time Olympic Sculls Champion, at 50
Olaf Tufte, the Norwegian rower who won Olympic gold in single sculls at Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008, has died at the age of 50, his family announced on Tuesday. Tufte was found unconscious at his family farm on Monday. Medical personnel arrived quickly at the scene, initiated life-saving first aid, and airlifted him to hospital for further treatment, according to a statement carried in Norwegian media.
The statement noted there were no witnesses to the incident and no suspicion of a workplace accident. Tufte spanned three decades of elite competition, representing Norway at seven Olympic Games beginning with Atlanta in 1996. He began his international career in the men's coxless four before transitioning to sculling disciplines, where he earned the majority of his honours. He added a silver medal in double sculls at the 2000 Sydney Games and a bronze in double sculls at Rio de Janeiro in 2016, the latter alongside Kjetil Borch. His seventh and final Olympic appearance came at the Tokyo Games, held in 2021. best bandy betting site
Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said Tufte "brought enormous athletic joy to us as a nation." German rower Jason Osborne, citing Tufte's 2008 Beijing victory as the motivation that launched his own career, paid tribute through Olympics.com. "You were and will always be a true inspiration," Osborne wrote.
Tufte's record of seven Olympic appearances across five Games cycles - from Atlanta through Tokyo - places him among the most durable figures in Norwegian sporting history. No further information on the circumstances of his death has been released by his family or Norwegian authorities.
