Quick Facts
Biography
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.