Jonsson’s finished tied for seventh over 18 km at the 1928 Olympic Winter Games in St. Moritz. His greatest international success was his bronze medal with the Swedish 4 x 10 km relay team at the 1934 World Championships. He was two-times Swedish champion, in the 15 km in 1933 and the 30 km in 1935.
Jonsson came from the ethnic group of Sami following the reindeer herds like his ancestors. Becoming more settled, he worked as a reindeer breeder, shoemaker and a horse shepherd. From the late 1940s, Jonsson lived in a lonely forest hut near, but eventually moved into, a retirement home in nearby Strömsund. His hut has been preserved and moved to Strömsund’s local museum where it can be visited still. He took part in several television documentaries and in 1988 in the film De sista skidåkarna (The last skiers).
Sweden