Olympic rowing legend Olaf Tufte dead at 50
Olaf Tufte, an Olympic rower who competed in seven Olympic Games for Norway, has died, his family said Tuesday. He was 50.
Tufte competed at his first Olympics in 1996 when the Games were held in Atlanta. He first competed in the men’s coxless four before he moved into single and double sculls – where he found most of his success on the world stage.
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He won gold medals in the 2004 and 2008 Olympics in single sculls. He took home a silver medal in the 2000 Olympics in double sculls and a bronze in 2016 in double sculls. He made a seventh Olympic appearance in 2021 when the Games were held in Tokyo.
Tufte was found unconscious at his family farm on Monday, Reuters reported, citing a statement in Norwegian media.
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"Medical personnel arrived quickly at the scene and life-saving first aid was initiated before Tufte was airlifted to hospital for further treatment," the statement said.
"There were no witnesses to the incident and no suspicion of a workplace accident."
German Olympic star Jason Osborne was among those who reacted to word of Tufte’s death.
"I remember watching you as a kid and winning in Beijing," he said, via Olympics.com. "This was my motivation to start my rowing career! You were and will always be a true inspiration! R.I.P champion."
Norway Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre told Norwegian media that the decorated rower "brought enormous athletic joy to us as a nation."