Sondre Norheim's grave
The memorial stone on Sondre Norheim's grave in Denbigh, ND.
"Until about 1850, skiing was a means of transport in wintertime, not a sport. Sondre Norheim changed all that. With his own incredible skiing skills and his modifications of the ski equipment, Sondre Norheim laid the foundation of a new sport which became global within 50 years after his death. Without Sondre Norheim, no Aspen, no Vail, no Val d'Isère, no Holmenkollen. I even doubt that there would be any Olympic Winter Games, had it not been for this great man. He is the Father of Modern Skiing". This is what the Norwegian Ambassador to the United States, Tom Wraalsen, said in his speech in Denbigh in 1997.
(Picture by Trond Olaf Oldrup Olsen, Skien, Norway).