Background
Ragnar Omtvedt was born in Oslo, Norway.
Ragnar Omtvedt was born in Oslo, Norway.
In 1912, he moved to the United Stes. In his first year competing in the United States in 1913, he set a world record of 51.5m (169 ft) on Curry Hill in Ironwood, Michigan, United States of America. In 1916, he set a ski jumping record at Steamboat Springs, Colorado where there is currently a restaurant named after him (Ragnar"s). He competed in cross-country skiing and Nordic combined at the 1924 Winter Olympics in Chamonix.
Ragnar was denied the opportunity to compete in ski jumping in the 1924 Olympics because a clerk forgot to submit his name to Olympic authorities.
Ragnar was injured in 1924 while jumping which caused nerve damage and ended his jumping career. Ragnar was elected into the National Ski Hall of Fame in 1957.
He died in Florida in 1975.