Henrik
Kristoffersen
Norway
·
Alpine Skiing
Date of birth | 2 July 1994 |
|---|---|
Place of birth | Lørenskog |
Age | 31 |
Nationality | Norway |
Career start | 2012 |
Disciplines | Alpine Skiing Combined / Alpine Skiing Giantslalom / Alpine Skiing Slalom |
Alpine skier Henrik Kristoffersen was introduced to skiing at the age of five by his father, former ski racer Lars Kristoffersen. Before long, Henrik had set his sights on becoming a professional skier, so Lars began to coach him. "I love skiing, that's the reason I do it," says Henrik. "I just love the feeling I get when I do a turn. That feeling is one of the best feelings I can have in my life."
As Henrik's skiing career kicked off, he rapidly went from one success to another. In 2012 – at the age of 17 – he won his first Junior Worlds title and won his first European Cup race. He then went on to score his first FIS World Cup podium at 19. His first win came along in front of 45,000 people at the Schladming night race in Austria.
In February 2014, at the age of 19, Kristoffersen made history by becoming the youngest male medalist in alpine skiing when he won slalom bronze at Sochi. In March 2015, he collected Junior Worlds titles number five and six, setting a new men's record. By the end of the season, he'd won eight FIS Junior Worlds medals, another all-time high. "It's cool to be the record-holder on the men's side, but success doesn't come easy. There's a lot of hard work involved," he says.
It's a maxim that has stood him in good stead as he has progressed to the upper echelons of the alpine skiing world, where he won his first discipline title for slalom in 2016, becoming the first skier to win the Adelboden, Wengen and Kitzbühel classics in the same season in the process.
A second silver medal was won in Pyeongchang, this time in giant slalom, before Henrik claimed his first senior World Championships title a year later in Åre, Sweden, where he stormed to victory in the GS again.
Further World Cup victories in both slalom and giant slalom have followed for Henrik, plus a bronze (slalom) at the 2021 World Championships in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, making him the most successful Norwegian slalom skier of all time.
Henrik claimed slalom gold at the 2023 World Championships in Courchevel, France. The following year, he had three FIS Alpine Ski World Cup podium finishes.
In a phenomenal 2024–25 season Henrik claimed his first giant slalom victory in almost three years at the Alpine Skiing World Cup in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia. The following day, he won the slalom race to do the GS and slalom double for the first time in his career. Two further slalom victories across the season helped him to his fourth overall Slalom World Cup title, putting him third on the all-time list of slalom champs – a phenomenal achievement by a truly brilliant slalom skier.
Henrik Kristoffersen is one of Norway's most successful alpine skiers
© Frode Sandbech/Red Bull Content Pool
Henrik doing what he loves most
© Norwegian Ski Federation
Henrik Kristoffersen carving through Kitzbühel's slopes
© Samo Vidic/Red Bull Content Pool
Another crystal globe for Henrik Kristoffersen
© Erich Spiess/Red Bull Content Pool