Bjørg Eva Jensen, from Larvik, won the Olympic 3000 m in Lake Placid 1980, the only gold medal Norway won in these games. This makes her the only Norwegian female speed skater to win an Olympic title. One week later she won the World Junior Championships, making this the most successfull 8 days in the history of Norwegian female speed skating.

Jensen started her international career by not finishing the World Junior Championships 1976, 15 years old. The next year she earned a bronze medal in these chamionships, advancing to silver in 1978 and 1979, before finally grabbing the title in 1980. She is the only skater, male or female, to win a medal in 4 consecutive World Junior Championships. One month before the Olympic Games she also placed 3rd in the World Championships.

After her successfull Olympic season her results gradually got worse, year by year, even though her own performance did not get much worse. She just did not have the same development as the East German and Soviet skaters in this period. She entered the Olympic Games 1984 with no possibility to defend her Olympic title, and placed 7th on her favourite distance, 3000 m.

This was supposed to be her last season, but she continued at national level, winning the national championships 1986, 87 and 88 (in addition to 1979-83). She tried a comeback in 1988, aiming to qualify for the Calgary Games, but she did not qualify.

She was a great bicyclist as well, and she was a part of the team winning the team trial in the national championships 1979. In 1980 she was awarded "Egebergs Ærespris" (Honorary Price of Egeberg) for her achievements in speed skating and cycling. She was flag bearer for the Norwegian Olympic team in 1984.

Highest rank on the big Adelskalender: 3 (1982)

Highest rank on the small Adelskalender: 10 (1980)

By Bjarte Hetland, last updated December 20, 2005