 |
|
| SKARSTEIN
Birgit |
| Sport |
Para cross-country, Rowing |
| NPC |
Norway
|
| Gender | Women |
| Age | 32 |
| Place of Birth | Oslo, NOR |
| Height | 1.80 m |
|
|
General Interest |
Other information |
COMBINING ROWING AND SKIING
She has competed in both Para rowing and Para cross-country skiing at international level, and says combining both sports has been beneficial for her athleticism. "Rowing is my number one priority. I train and compete in skiing to become a better rower and find this to be a great combination. Changing around sports and movements makes me able to train better, to train more, and to lower the risk of injuries. Rowing does make me a better skier as it gives me strength and endurance as well as a competitive mindset. Skiing gives me the hours and hours I need as base training. Changing environments and movements keeps me sharp and hungry, and I can pick up the best parts from both environments." (worldrowing.com, 01 Nov 2019)
OTHER ACTIVITIES
She has served on the International Paralympic Committee [IPC] athlete's council, the finance committee of Oslo City Council in Norway, and the Norwegian Advisory Board of Biotechnology. (paralympic.org, 28 Oct 2021; worldrowing.com, 01 Nov 2019; Athlete, 26 Feb 2018)
DANCING WITH THE STARS
In 2020 she became the first wheelchair dancer to feature on Norwegian celebrity talent show 'Skal vi danse?' [Shall we Dance?]. She made the decision to take part in the programme following the postponement of the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, and finished in sixth place. "I like the show because it's so demanding. It's really difficult and the fact that no one has ever done it in a wheelchair in Norway, it means that we can break some new ground. It's cross-training at a whole new level. It surprised me that no matter how many boundaries we broke, or how many crazy impossible things we managed to nail, there was always some people not believing in us and saying I shouldn't be there. Sometimes it felt like it was us against the world and it brought us into a mission that was bigger than us, the mission of communicating that dance is for everyone and we are a part of this world just as much as you are." (paralympic.org, 22 Aug 2020) |
Impairment Information |
Type of Impairment |
Spinal Cord Injuries |
Origin of Impairment |
Acquired |
Further Personal Information |
Residence |
Oslo, NOR |
Occupation |
Athlete |
Languages |
English, Norwegian |
Higher education |
Political Science - University of Oslo: Norway |
Sport Specific Information |
When and where did you begin this sport? |
She began Para cross-country skiing in 2009 at age 20 in Beitostolen, Norway, and took up Para rowing in 2012. |
Why this sport? |
Following her spinal cord injury, she initially took up Para cross-country skiing. "I wanted to get back into life after injury, and to get back into nature." She later began Para rowing because she wanted to take part in a summer sport. "The chief of Paralympic sports in Norway guided me towards rowing as he thought that would fit my body and mind. Luckily I got straight into a really great rowing club and was taken in with spirit and lots of challenges. I just completely fell in love." |
Club / Team |
Christiania Roklub: Levanger, NOR |
Name of coach |
Bjorn Kristiansen [cross-country skiing, national], NOR; Magnus Evenby [cross-country skiing, national], NOR |
General Interest |
Hobbies |
Politics, mountain climbing, sports. (Twitter profile, 16 Oct 2021) |
Hero / Idol |
Norwegian cross-country skier Marit Bjorgen. (Athlete, 26 Feb 2018) |
Injuries |
In January 2020 she sustained a torn stomach muscle and a stress fracture in her back. (vg.no, 07 Feb 2020)
She sustained three stress fractures to her ribs in the 2015 rowing season, and required four months to recover. (aftenposten.no, 22 Jul 2016) |
Sporting philosophy / motto |
"It'll work out." (Athlete, 26 Feb 2018) |
Awards and honours |
She was named Female Para Athlete of the Year at the 2019 Norway Sports Gala. She also received the Honorary Prize of Egeberg, which recognises Norwegian athletes who excel in more than one sport. (aftenposten.no, 25 May 2019; innherred.no, 05 Jan 2019)
She was named flag bearer for Norway at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. (pyeongchang2018.com, 09 Mar 2018)
She received the 2016 Tronder Award, which recognises outstanding achievement in the Trondelag region of Norway. (adressa.no, 06 Jan 2017) |
Other sports |
She has represented Norway in Para cross-country skiing and Para rowing. In rowing, she won gold in the PR1 single sculls at the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo and competed at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro. She has also competed in cross-country skiing, for which she is classified as an LW11 athlete, at the 2014 and 2018 Paralympic Winter Games. (IPC, 29 Nov 2021; SportsDeskOnline, 02 Dec 2021; global.toyota, 01 Jan 2020) |
Ambitions |
To compete in cross-country skiing at the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing. (dagbladet.no, 05 Dec 2018) |
Impairment |
In 2008 she sustained serious injuries to her left leg in a swimming accident in Malaysia. She jumped into the water from a jetty, but had not checked the water depth and hit the bottom. She had 16 operations, having also contracted a bacterial infection. In September 2009, in the last of those 16 operations in Norway, she received an epidural anaesthesia that was incorrectly administered and never regained the feeling in her legs. (adressa.no, 20 Dec 2016; vg.no, 16 Aug 2015; skiforbundet.no, Dec 2014; kk.no, Mar 2014; vg.no, 27 Jan 2012) |
| Competition Highlights (historical) |
World Championships - Rowing |
| Rank |
Year |
Event |
Result |
| 2 |
2013 |
Arms Only Single Sculls |
5:18.79 |
| 1 |
2014 |
Arms Only Single Sculls |
5:22.12 |
| 3 |
2015 |
Arms Only Single Sculls |
5:31.94 |
| 1 |
2017 |
PR1 Single Sculls |
11:14.17 |
| 1 |
2018 |
PR1 Single Sculls |
10:13.63 |
| 1 |
2019 |
PR1 Single Sculls |
10:18.83 |
Paralympic Games - Rowing |
| Rank |
Year |
Event |
Result |
| 4 |
2016 |
Arms Only Single Sculls |
5:25.04 |
| 1 |
2021 |
PR1 Single Sculls |
10:56.88 |
Paralympic Games - Para cross-country |
| Rank |
Year |
Event |
Result |
| 12 |
2014 |
12km - Sitting |
46:22.8 |
| Semifinals |
2014 |
1km Sprint - Sitting |
3:11.2 |
| 12 |
2014 |
5km - Sitting |
19:11.7 |
| |
2018 |
12km - Sitting |
DNF |
| Semifinal |
2018 |
Sprint - Sitting |
4:29.4 |
| 7 |
2018 |
5km - Sitting |
19:38.6 |
| 8 |
2018 |
4 x 2.5km Relay Mixed |
27:01.4 |
World Championships - Para cross-country |
| Rank |
Year |
Event |
Result |
| 9 |
2014/2015 |
12km - Sitting |
44:18.2 |
| 11 |
2014/2015 |
1km Sprint - Sitting |
|
| 11 |
2014/2015 |
5km - Sitting |
17:39.6 |
| 5 |
2016/2017 |
1km Sprint - Sitting |
|
| 5 |
2016/2017 |
4 x 2.5km Relay Mixed |
29:17.0 |
| 2 |
2016/2017 |
12km - Sitting |
36:51.7 |
| 3 |
2016/2017 |
5km - Sitting |
14:42.4 |
| 3 |
2018/2019 |
5km - Sitting |
18:02.6 |
| 4 |
2018/2019 |
Sprint - Sitting |
|
| 3 |
2018/2019 |
12km - Sitting |
46:37.5 |
| 4 |
2021/2022 |
7.5km - Sitting |
31:02.5 |
| 5 |
2021/2022 |
15km - Sitting |
50:30.1 |
| 9 |
2021/2022 |
Sprint - Sitting |
|
European Championships - Rowing |
| Rank |
Year |
Event |
Result |
| 1 |
2021 |
PR1 Single Sculls |
10:22.06 |
| |
|
