John H. Caldwell
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John Homer Caldwell (born November 28, 1928) was an American nordic skier who competed in the 1950s and later wrote a series of books in the United States that popularized cross-country skiing in that country.
A native of Vermont and a Dartmouth College graduate, Caldwell competed in the 1952 Winter Olympics, finishing 22nd in the nordic combined event and 73rd in the 18 km cross-country skiing event. He later coached three Winter Olympic teams for the United States in the 1960s and later coached at the Putney School from the mid-1950s until his 1989 retirement. Among the students he coached was Bill Koch, the only American to ever medal in cross country skiing both at the Winter Olympics (30 km silver: 1976 Innsbruck) and the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships (30 km bronze: 1982 Oslo), and his four children including his eldest son, Tim, who competed in four Winter Olympics of his own (1972-1984)
In 1964, Caldwell wrote his first how-to book on cross-country skiing in the United States titled Cross-Country Ski. The book is now in its eighth printing as of 2005.
He was inducted into the National Ski Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Vermont Ski Museum Hall of Fame in 2005, along with his son Tim, now an attorney in New Hampshire.
A cross country ski trail at Telemark in Cable, Wisconsin is named in his honor.
[edit] Selected work
- Caldwell, John H. (1971). The new cross-country ski book. S. Greene Press. 128 pp.
[edit] References
- Amazon.com information on Caldwell's book.
- Cable, Wisconsin ski trail named in Caldwell's honor.
- Olympic cross country skiing 18 km results: 1948-52
- Olympic nordic combined results: 1948-64
- Putney School announcement of the 2005 Vermont Ski Museum Hall of Fame inductees.
- Vermont Ski Museum Hall of Fame inductees.
