Stefania Belmondo (born 13 January 1969) is an Italian former cross-country skier, a two-time

Olympic champion This article includes lists of all Olympic medalists since 1896, organized by each Olympic sport or discipline, and also by Olympiad. Medalist with most medals by sport Summer Olympic sports Winter Olympic sports A. Including military patrol e ...

and four-time

world champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

in her career.

Biography

Debut

Belmondo was born in Vinadio, in the

province of Cuneo Cuneo ( Italian), or Coni ( Piedmontese), is a province in the southwest of the Piedmont region of Italy. To the west it borders on the French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (departments of Alpes-Maritimes, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and H ...

(

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

), the daughter of a housewife and an electric company employee. In her career she skied with the G.S. Forestale. She started to ski at the age of three in the

ese mountains of her native city. She made her debut at the

FIS Nordic World Ski Championships The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships is a biennial nordic skiing event organized by the International Ski Federation (FIS). The World Championships was started in 1925 for men and opened for women's participation in 1954. World Championship eve ...

in 1987. The next season she joined the main national team of

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, and then participated at the

1988 Winter Olympics The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games (french: XVes Jeux olympiques d'hiver) and commonly known as Calgary 1988 ( bla, Mohkínsstsisi 1988; sto, Wîchîspa Oyade 1988 or ; cr, Otôskwanihk 1998/; srs, Guts� ...

, held in

Calgary, Alberta Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

. In 1989, she won a World Cup event for her first time, in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

, and ended that season second overall.

Early success, injury, return

At the

1991 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1991 took place between 7 and 17 February 1991 in Val di Fiemme, Italy. The women's 5 km was reintroduced after not being held in the previous championships. The men's 10 km was introduced in this championsh ...

, she won a bronze medal in the 15 km trial, and a silver in the 4 × 5 km relay. The

1992 Winter Olympics ) , nations = 64 , athletes = 1,801 (1313 men, 488 women) , events = 57 in 6 sports (12 disciplines) , opening = 8 February 1992 , closing = 23 February 1992 , opened_by = President François Mitterrand , cauldron ...

Albertville Albertville (; Arpitan: ''Arbèrtvile'') is a subprefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Southeastern France. It is best known for hosting the 1992 Winter Olympics and Paralympics. In 2018, the commune had ...

brought the first gold medal for Belmondo, in the 30 km specialty. At the

1993 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1993 took place 19–28 February 1993 in Falun, Sweden, for the third time (1954, 1974). This event saw the creation of the combined pursuit where competitors would skate one distance in the classical interv ...

, she won golds in the 5 km + 10 km combined pursuit and the 30 km, and a silver in the 4 × 5 km relay, before an injury to her right

hallux Toes are the digits (fingers) of the foot of a tetrapod. Animal species such as cats that walk on their toes are described as being ''digitigrade''. Humans, and other animals that walk on the soles of their feet, are described as being ''plan ...

required a surgery, and caused a 4-month absence from competition. After a second operation, Belmondo participated to the

1994 Winter Olympics The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games ( no, De 17. olympiske vinterleker; nn, Dei 17. olympiske vinterleikane) and commonly known as Lillehammer '94, was an international winter multi-sport event held fr ...

Lillehammer Lillehammer () is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. Some of the more notable villages in the munic ...

, gaining just two bronze medals; after this disappointing performance she decided to continue skiing, against the advice of her physician. The 1996–97 season was one of her best since the surgeries, when she won three silver medals (5 km, 15 km, 30 km), all were behind

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

Yelena Välbe Yelena Valeryevna Välbe (russian: Елена Валерьевна Вяльбе, née ''Trubitsyna''; born 20 April 1968) is a Russian former cross-country skier. She won a record-high 14 gold, including all five golds at the 1997 World Champions ...

though she tied with Välbe in the 5 km + 10 km combined pursuit event. In the

1998 Winter Olympics The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially known as the and commonly known as Nagano 1998 ( ja, 長野1998), was a winter multi-sport event held from 7 to 22 February 1998, mainly in Nagano, Japan, with some events taking place in th ...

in Nagano,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

, she won a third place with the 4 × 5 km relay, and an individual silver in the 30 km. The bronze medal in the relay was remarkable because the Italian team was ninth as Belmondo started the last leg. The 1999 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships saw Stefania Belmondo win two gold medals (5 km + 10 km combined pursuit, 15 km) and a silver (4 × 5 km relay). In her final year of competition, 2002, she won a gold medal, as well as a silver and a bronze, in the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

. She concluded that year's World Cup in third place.

Other career successes

*Belmondo also found success at the Holmenkollen ski festival, winning the 30 km women's event twice (1997, 2002). *She is the one of only two women to ever win the 30 km

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

, and Holmenkollen events (

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...

Marit Bjørgen Marit Bjørgen (born 21 March 1980) is a former Norwegian cross-country skier. She is ranked first in the all-time Cross-Country World Cup rankings with 114 individual victories. Bjørgen is also the most successful sprinter in Cross-Country Wo ...

is the other.). *Belmondo earned the Holmenkollen medal in 1997 (shared with Bjarte Engen Vik and

Bjørn Dæhlie Bjørn Erlend Dæhlie (born 19 June 1967) is a Norwegian businessman and retired cross-country skier. From 1992 to 1999, Dæhlie won the Nordic World Cup six times, finishing second in 1994 and 1998. Dæhlie won a total of 29 medals in the Olymp ...

1997 World Championships

At the pursuit event world championships in Trondheim 1997 the organizers had to resort to

Photo finish A photo finish occurs in a sporting race when multiple competitors cross the finishing line at nearly the same time. As the naked eye may not be able to determine which of the competitors crossed the line first, a photo or video taken at the finis ...

to determine who between Stefania Belmondo and

had won the race. Eventually the gold medal is awarded to the Russian and the Italian Silver for just , both athletes are still credited the same time.

2006 Winter Olympics

At the

2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially the XX Olympic Winter Games ( it, XX Giochi olimpici invernali) and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February 2006 in Turin, Italy. This marked the second ...

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

, in her native region of Piedmont, she lit the

Olympic Flame The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. Several months before the Olympic Games, the Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece. This ceremony starts the Olymp ...

at the

opening ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly-constructed location or the start of an event.

. During the 2006 Winter Olympics, Belmondo had a series of webpages on the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games website regarding her reaction and emotions during the games.

Cross-country skiing results

All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation (FIS).

Olympic Games

* 10 medals – (2 gold, 3 silver, 5 bronze)

World Championships

* 13 medals – (4 gold, 7 silver, 2 bronze) :a. Cancelled due to extremely cold weather.

World Cup

Season titles

* 1 title – (1 sprint)

Season standings

Individual podiums

*23 victories *66 podiums

Team podiums

* 4 victories – (22 , 5 ) * 27 podiums – (24 , 4 ) Note: Until the 1999 World Championships and the 1994 Olympics, World Championship and Olympic races were included in the World Cup scoring system.

References

External links

* *
Holmenkollen medalists
– click Holmenkollmedaljen for downloadable pdf file
Holmenkollen winners since 1892
– click Vinnere for downloadable pdf file {{DEFAULTSORT:Belmondo, Stefania 1969 births Living people Sportspeople from the Province of Cuneo Cross-country skiers at the 1988 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 1992 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 1994 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 1998 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 2002 Winter Olympics Holmenkollen medalists Holmenkollen Ski Festival winners Olympic cauldron lighters Italian female cross-country skiers Olympic cross-country skiers of Italy Olympic gold medalists for Italy Olympic silver medalists for Italy Olympic bronze medalists for Italy Olympic medalists in cross-country skiing Cross-country skiers of Gruppo Sportivo Forestale FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in cross-country skiing Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1994 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1992 Winter Olympics