Thomas Michael Jacobs (August 14, 1926 – April 10, 2014) was an American Olympic

Nordic skier Nordic skiing encompasses the various types of skiing in which the toe of the ski boot is fixed to the Ski binding, binding in a manner that allows the heel to rise off the ski, unlike alpine skiing, where the boot is attached to the ski from toe ...

who competed in the 1950s. He was educated at

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all ...

in Vermont, and was a member of the College's ski team. Jacobs competed at the

1952 Winter Olympics The 1952 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VI Olympic Winter Games ( no, De 6. olympiske vinterleker; nn, Dei 6. olympiske vinterleikane) and commonly known as Oslo 1952, was a winter multi-sport event held from 14 to 25 February 195 ...

in Oslo, where he finished 21st in the Nordic combined event and 66th in the 18 km

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

event. In 1953, he became the first full-time ski coach at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he built the team into a national powerhouse and hired future U.S. Ski Team head coach Bob Beattie, whose 1959 Colorado team won the NCAA championship. After competing in the Olympics, Jacobs founded the Inside Edge Ski & Bike Shop in Glens Falls, New York, one of the only Nordic skiing equipment stores in the United States. He also started a direct-supply and mail-order business, incorporated as Reliable Racing Supplies in 1969, which was the first in New York to import European bicycles, and distributed the Techniski snowless ski, which he demonstrated in New York's Central Park. Jacobs and his wife Marilyn retired from the skiing and cycling business in 2004, and left the running of the business to their youngest son, John Jacobs."On the Air with the ARCC"
, WKBE (100.3 The Point). On January 31, 2008, Thomas Jacobs was inducted into the U.S. National Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame.

References

1926 births 2014 deaths American male cross-country skiers American male Nordic combined skiers Olympic cross-country skiers of the United States Olympic Nordic combined skiers of the United States Nordic combined skiers at the 1952 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 1952 Winter Olympics Middlebury College alumni {{US-crosscountry-skiing-bio-stub