NAGANO 1998/ALPINE SKIING	FEBRUARY 9, 1998 VOL. 151 NO. 6
	More Riches for Norway's One-Man Gold Rush By ROD USHER n Norway, one in four do it, while the rest of the country's 4.5 million inhabitants love watching it. Cross-country skiing is a serious passion, and the Norwegians are seriously passionate about their hero, Bjorn Daehlie. No other human is so well-made for cross-country skiing--and no other more successful, a fact confirmed by Daehlie's nine world championships and five Olympic golds. In addition he has won 41 World Cup victories, the latest in Davos, Switzerland. The 30-year-old is such a hero at home that a book about him--Gulljakten, or Gold Chase--by his manager Rolf Nereng sold 130,000 copies last year. The fan mail streams in at the rate of 85 letters a week. Daehlie is not resting on his laurels, but he does know about resting and pacing. He trains up to five hours a day 10 months of the year, but takes time to hunt and fish. "I have been lucky and avoided injuries and overtraining. I have been patient with my training," he says. The "Nannestad Express," as he is nicknamed after his home village near Oslo, does not take his time in his favorite event, the 10 km race. His main rivals in Nagano will be compatriot Thomas Alsgaard, Finland's Mika Myllylae, and the veteran from Kazakhstan, Vladimir Smirnov. When he's not rushing after gold Daehlie tries to encourage children to play sports. Says the father of boys aged three and one, "Society has changed drastically. Children sit inside all the time instead of playing outside." To which end he runs an annual children's cross-country contest. Last year it drew 2,000 juniors, all, of course, anxious to be the future Bjorn Daehlie. --Reported by Ulla Plon /Copenhagen
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