René Sommerfeldt (born October 2, 1974 in Zittau

Zittau

Zittau is a city in the south east of the Free State of Saxony, Germany, close to the border tripoint of Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic. , there are 28,638 people in the city. It is part of the Görlitz district....

) is a German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 cross-country skier

Cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...

 who competed from 1994 to 2010. He won 2 medals in the 4 x 10 km relays at the Winter Olympics with a silver in 2006 and a bronze in 2002. Sommerfeldt's best individual Olympic finish was 12th in the 15 km event in 2006.

Sommerfeldt also has three medals at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships

FIS Nordic World Ski Championships

The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships have been held in various numbers and types of events since 1925 for men and since 1954 for women. Championship events include nordic skiing's three disciplines: cross-country skiing, ski jumping, and nordic combined...

, earning two silvers (50 km: 2001, 4 x 10 km: 2003) and one bronze (4 x 10 km: 2001).

He also won the 50 km event at the Holmenkollen ski festival

Holmenkollen ski festival

The Holmenkollen Ski Festival is a traditional annual Nordic skiing event in Holmenkollen, Oslo, Norway. The full official name of the event is Holmenkollen FIS World Cup Nordic. It takes place in March and has been arranged every year since 1892, except for 1898 and during World War II...

 in 2004, becoming the second German to win this prestigious honor (the first was Gerhard Grimmer

Gerhard Grimmer

Gerhard Grimmer was an East German cross-country skier who competed during the 1960s and 1970s. He won several medals at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, including golds in the 50 km and the 4 x 10 km relay ; silvers in the 30 km , 4 x 10 km relay , and 15 km ; and...

in 1970/71).

Sommerfeldt will become a coach in cross country skiing for the German team.