Stina Nilsson facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Stina Nilsson
Stina Nilsson in 2023
Country	Sweden
Full name	Täpp Karin Stina Nilsson
Born	(1993-06-24) 24 June 1993 (age 31) Malung, Sweden
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Ski club	IFK Mora SK
World Cup career
Seasons	9 – (2012–2020) (cross-country skiing) 2 – (2021–2022) (biathlon)
Individual wins	23 (cross-country skiing) 0 (biathlon)
Team wins	3 (cross-country skiing) 0 (biathlon)
Indiv. podiums	41 (cross-country skiing) 1 (biathlon)
Team podiums	7 (cross-country skiing) 1 (biathlon)
Indiv. starts	108 (cross-country skiing) 14 (biathlon)
Team starts	9 (cross-country skiing) 1 (biathlon)
Overall titles	0 – (4th in 2017)
Discipline titles	3 – (2 U23, 1 SP)
Medal record Representing  Sweden Women's cross-country skiing International nordic ski competitions Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 1 2 2 World Championships 2 5 0 Olympic Games Gold 2018 Pyeongchang Individual sprint Silver 2018 Pyeongchang 4 × 5 km relay Silver 2018 Pyeongchang Team sprint Bronze 2014 Sochi Team sprint Bronze 2018 Pyeongchang 30 km classical World Championships Gold 2019 Seefeld Team sprint Gold 2019 Seefeld 4 × 5 km relay Silver 2015 Falun Individual sprint Silver 2015 Falun Team sprint Silver 2015 Falun 4 × 5 km relay Silver 2017 Lahti 4 × 5 km relay Silver 2019 Seefeld Individual sprint Junior World Championships Gold 2012 Erzurum Individual sprint Gold 2013 Liberec Individual sprint Gold 2013 Liberec 4 × 3.33 km relay Silver 2012 Erzurum 4 × 3.33 km relay European Youth Olympic Festival Gold 2011 Liberec Individual sprint Women's biathlon European Championships Bronze 2023 Lenzerheide Mixed relay
Updated on 29 March 2020.

Stina Nilsson (born 24 June 1993) is a Swedish former biathlete and former cross-country skier. She is a five-time Olympic medalist and the 2018 Olympic champion in the individual sprint. In March 2020 she announced that she would switch to competing in biathlon. In April 2024, she announced her return to cross-country skiing, this time as a long-distance racer.

Career

2011–12: World Cup debut and Junior World Champion

Stina Nilsson finished 23rd in her World Cup debut in Drammen on 7 March 2012. Nilsson won the gold medal in the sprint event at the 2012 Junior World Championships in Erzurum, Turkey.

2012–13

At the 2013 Junior World Championships in Liberec, Czech Republic, Nilsson defended her gold medal in the sprint.

2013–14: First Olympic medal and World Cup podium

On 19 February 2014, Nilsson and Ida Ingemarsdotter, won bronze medals together in the team sprint at the Olympic Games in Sochi. Nilsson also finished 10th in the individual sprint. She made her first individual World Cup podium on 5 March, having finished third in the classical sprint in Drammen.

2014–15: Falun World Championships

Nilsson won three silver medals at the 2015 World Championships in Falun; On 19 February in the individual sprint, on 22 February in the team sprint (with Ida Ingemarsdotter), and on 26 February in the 4 × 5 km relay (with Sofia Bleckur, Charlotte Kalla, and Maria Rydqvist). Nilsson won the Under-23 World Cup title for the 2014–2015 season and finished fourth in the Sprint World Cup.

2015–16

She defended the U23 World Cup title in the 2015–2016 season and finished third in the Sprint World Cup, having won three individual sprint events over the season.

2016–17

On 2 March 2017, she won the silver medal in the 4 × 5 km relay (with Anna Haag, Charlotte Kalla, and Ebba Andersson) at the World Championships in Lahti. Nilsson won nine individual World Cup races over the 2016–2017 season, finishing fourth in the Overall World Cup and second in the Sprint World Cup. She also finished overall-third in the Tour de Ski.

2017–18: Four Olympic medals

Nilsson won four medals at the 2018 Olympic Games in Pyeongchang. On 13 February she became an Olympic champion, having won the gold medal in the individual sprint. On 17 and 21 February respectively, she won silver medals in the 4 × 5 km relay (with Anna Haag, Charlotte Kalla, and Ebba Andersson) and in the team sprint (with Charlotte Kalla). On 25 February, Nilsson won a surprise bronze in the 30 km classical mass start. She also finished 10th in the 15 km skiathlon. She finished second in the 2017–2018 Sprint World Cup, having won three individual sprint events over the season.

She was awarded the Victoria Scholarship in 2018.

2018-19: Continued World Championship success

Nilsson started the season off successfully, but injured her thigh in an extreme finish line stretch at the Otepää sprint event. She managed to recover just in time to return to competition at the 2019 World Championships in Seefeld, where she started her campaign with a silver medal in the freestyle sprint. She then went on to win her first World Championships gold medals in the classical team sprint and the 4 × 5 kilometre relay; in the latter, she anchored Sweden to the win by sprinting past Therese Johaug of Norway in the final uphill. Nilsson's success continued for the rest of the season and included a distance win at the World Cup finals in Quebec. She won the Sprint World Cup for the first time in her career.

2019-20: Injuries, switch to biathlon

Nilsson suffered a rib injury in the summer, but started the season with stable results, including 2nd places in the sprint and team sprint in Planica. At the first event of the Tour de Ski, however, the injury aggravated and she was forced to quit the Tour. She soon decided to end her season early after the recovery training proved to have been too heavy. The podiums in Planica turned out to be her last as a cross-country skier.

On 22 March, she officially announced the unexpected news that she was switching sports to biathlon on her Instagram account. She left cross-country skiing as one of Sweden's most decorated skiers of the 2010s.

2020-21: First steps in biathlon

For most of the 2020–21 season, Nilsson competed in the IBU Cup, where her season highlight was an 8th place in the pursuit at Brezno. A 2nd place in a relay held the same weekend marked Nilsson's first international biathlon podium. She also took part in the European Championships in January, placing 42nd in the sprint and 38th in the pursuit; struggles with shooting were consistently present during Nilsson's debut season.

In March 2021, Nilsson was selected to the Swedish team at their home World Cup competitions in Östersund, Sweden. She managed to perform well events, placing 26th in the sprint and 22nd in the pursuit, thus collecting her first world cup points already in her very first competitions in the Biathlon World Cup.

2021-22: First World Cup podiums in biathlon, Olympic roster

In the spring of 2021, Nilsson officially became part of Sweden's national biathlon team, having previously held a so-called "developmental" spot in the team. In the summer biathlon Swedish championships, she sensationally won gold over the Öberg sisters, Elvira and Hanna.

Nilsson's second season as a biathlete saw her secure a near-permanent spot at the starting line in World Cup competitions; she took part in almost all WC weekends. Managing to recover her skiing speed and improving her aim, she reached the top twenty in eight individual competitions. In January 2022, she celebrated her first World Cup podium, a second place at the relay in Ruhpolding, where she got to ski a leg at the absence of Sweden's biggest biathlon stars. In March, Nilsson reached her first individual podium in biathlon when she placed third in the sprint at Kontiolahti, Finland.

She was named as the last athlete into the Swedish biathlon team for the 2022 Beijing Olympics, her first as a biathlete. Due to the success of her more seasoned teammates, Nilsson did not get to start in any of the races, which prevented her from getting a first chance at winning an Olympic medal in both cross-country skiing and biathlon.

Cross-country skiing results

All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation (FIS).

Olympic Games

• 5 medals – (1 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze)

World Championships

• 7 medals – (2 gold, 5 silver)

World Cup

Season titles

• 3 titles – (2 U23, 1 Sprint)

Season standings

Season	Age	Discipline standings				Ski Tour standings
		Overall	Distance	Sprint	U23	Nordic Opening	Tour de Ski	Ski Tour 2020	World Cup Final	Ski Tour Canada
2012	18	93	—	63	N/A	—	—	N/A	—	N/A
2013	19	67	—	38	N/A	—	—	N/A	—	N/A
2014	20	35	72	12	N/A	52	—	N/A	DNF	N/A
2015	21	12	41	4	01	21	DNF	N/A	N/A	N/A
2016	22	11	23	03	01	02	24	N/A	N/A	DNF
2017	23	4	6	02	N/A	5	03	N/A	03	N/A
2018	24	12	33	02	N/A	7	—	N/A	—	N/A
2019	25	5	20	01	N/A	6	DNF	N/A	01	N/A
2020	26	29	46	16	N/A	11	DNF	—	N/A	N/A

Individual podiums

• 23 victories – (12 WC, 11 SWC)
• 41 podiums – (24 WC, 17 SWC)

No.	Season	Date	Location	Race	Level	Place
1	2013–14	5 March 2014	Drammen, Norway	1.3 km Sprint C	World Cup	3rd
2		14 March 2014	Falun, Sweden	1.2 km Sprint C	Stage World Cup	3rd
3	2014–15	21 December 2014	Davos, Switzerland	1.3 km Sprint F	World Cup	2nd
4		17 January 2015	Otepää, Estonia	1.2 km Sprint C	World Cup	2nd
5		14 February 2015	Östersund, Sweden	1.2 km Sprint C	World Cup	3rd
6	2015–16	27 November 2015	Rukatunturi, Finland	1.4 km Sprint C	Stage World Cup	2nd
7		29 November 2015		10 km C Pursuit	Stage World Cup	2nd
8		27–29 November 2015	Nordic Opening	Overall Standings	World Cup	2nd
9		13 December 2015	Davos, Switzerland	1.6 km Sprint F	World Cup	1st
10		19 December 2015	Toblach, Italy	1.3 km Sprint F	World Cup	3rd
11		16 January 2016	Planica, Slovenia	1.2 km Sprint F	World Cup	1st
12		11 February 2016	Stockholm, Sweden	1.2 km Sprint C	World Cup	3rd
13		1 March 2016	Gatineau, Canada	1.7 km Sprint F	Stage World Cup	2nd
14		4 March 2016	Quebec City, Canada	1.5 km Sprint F	Stage World Cup	1st
15	2016–17	26 November 2016	Rukatunturi, Finland	1.4 km Sprint C	World Cup	1st
16		31 December 2016	Val Müstair, Switzerland	1.5 km Sprint F	Stage World Cup	1st
17		3 January 2017	Oberstdorf, Germany	5  km + 5 km C/F Skiathlon	Stage World Cup	1st
18		4 January 2017		10 km F Pursuit	Stage World Cup	1st
19		7 January 2017	Val di Fiemme, Italy	10 km C Mass Start	Stage World Cup	1st
20		31 December 2016 – 8 January 2017	Tour de Ski	Overall Standings	World Cup	3rd
21		28 January 2017	Falun, Sweden	1.4 km Sprint F	World Cup	1st
22		18 February 2017	Otepää, Estonia	1.3 km Sprint F	World Cup	1st
23		8 March 2017	Drammen, Norway	1.2 km Sprint C	World Cup	1st
24		17 March 2017	Quebec City, Canada	1.5 km Sprint F	Stage World Cup	1st
25		19 March 2017		10 km F Pursuit	Stage World Cup	3rd
26		17–19 March 2017	World Cup Final	Overall Standings	World Cup	3rd
27	2017–18	24 November 2017	Rukatunturi, Finland	1.4 km Sprint C	Stage World Cup	1st
28		9 December 2017	Davos, Switzerland	1.5 km Sprint F	World Cup	1st
29		20 January 2018	Planica, Slovenia	1.4 km Sprint C	World Cup	1st
30		3 March 2018	Lahti, Finland	1.4 km Sprint F	World Cup	2nd
31		7 March 2018	Drammen, Norway	1.2 km Sprint C	World Cup	2nd
32	2018–19	30 November 2018	Lillehammer, Norway	1.3 km Sprint F	Stage World Cup	2nd
33		15 December 2018	Davos, Switzerland	1.5 km Sprint F	World Cup	1st
34		29 December 2018	Toblach, Italy	1.3 km Sprint F	Stage World Cup	1st
35		1 January 2019	Val Müstair, Switzerland	1.4 km Sprint F	Stage World Cup	1st
36		12 January 2019	Dresden, Germany	1.6 km Sprint F	World Cup	1st
37		16 March 2019	Falun, Sweden	1.4 km Sprint F	World Cup	1st
38		22 March 2019	Quebec City, Canada	1.6 km Sprint F	Stage World Cup	1st
39		23 March 2019		10 km C Mass Start	Stage World Cup	1st
40		22–24 March 2019	World Cup Final	Overall Standings	World Cup	1st
41	2019–20	21 December 2019	Planica, Slovenia	1.2 km Sprint F	World Cup	2nd

Team podiums

• 3 victories – (3 TS)
• 7 podiums – (1 RL, 6 TS)

No.	Season	Date	Location	Race	Level	Place	Teammate(s)
1	2012–13	13 January 2013	Liberec, Czech Republic	6 × 0.85 km Team Sprint F	World Cup	2nd	Ingemarsdotter
2	2014–15	18 January 2015	Otepää, Estonia	6 × 1.2 km Team Sprint F	World Cup	1st	Ingemarsdotter
3	2015–16	17 January 2016	Planica, Slovenia	6 × 1.2 km Team Sprint F	World Cup	1st	Ingemarsdotter
4	2016–17	18 December 2016	La Clusaz, France	4 × 5 km Relay C/F	World Cup	3rd	Wikén / Rydqvist / Dyvik
5	2017–18	14 January 2018	Dresden, Germany	6 × 1.3 km Team Sprint F	World Cup	2nd	Falk
6	2018–19	13 January 2019	Dresden, Germany	6 × 1.6 km Team Sprint F	World Cup	1st	Dahlqvist
7	2019–20	22 December 2019	Planica, Slovenia	6 × 1.2 km Team Sprint F	World Cup	2nd	Sundling

Biathlon results

All results are sourced from the International Biathlon Union.

World Cup

Individual podiums

• 0 victories
• 1 podiums

No.	Season	Date	Location	Race	Place
1	2021–22	5 March 2022	Kontiolahti	Sprint	3rd

Team podiums

• 0 victories
• 1 podiums

No.	Season	Date	Location	Race	Place	Team
1	2021–22	14 January 2022	Ruhpolding	Relay	2nd	Skottheim / Nilsson / Brorsson / Magnusson

*Results are from IBU races which include the Biathlon World Cup, Biathlon World Championships and the Winter Olympic Games.

See also

In Spanish: Stina Nilsson para niños