First Olympic Games
Dæhlie won his first Olympic medals at the 1992 Albertville Winter Games. He claimed silver in the 30km before going on to claim three gold medals in the combined pursuit, the relay and 50km.
Gold rush
Dæhlie added four more golds in front of his home crowd at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Games. But he also suffered a rare defeat when he was outsprinted in the thrilling final of the men’s relay. However, four years later in Nagano, Dæhlie finally collected a gold medal in this event when his relay team-mate Thomas Alsgaard won an equally tense sprint finish.
Final victory
Dæhlie' final Olympic race – and his final victory – was in the 50km in Nagano. He would later describe it as the hardest race of his life. After skiing for more than two hours, he crossed the finish line 8.1 seconds faster than his nearest rival. Dæhlie collapsed and was unable to stand up again for five minutes.
The greatest
Björn Dæhlie was in a class of his own in cross-country skiing and still holds many Olympic records. He is still the only winter athlete to win eight gold medals and the only one to win a total of 12 medals. Many view him as the greatest Winter Olympic athlete of all-time.